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HISTORY 


OF    THE 


SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE, 


FROM    ITS 


INCORPORATION  DECEMBER  19,  1801,  TO  NOV.  25,  1857,  INCLUDING 
SKETCHES  OF  ITS  PRESIDENTS  AND  PROFESSORS- 


WITH 


AN   APPENDIX. 


BY  M.  LABORDE,  M.  D., 

PROFESSOR  OF  ^tETAPHYSICS,  LOGIC  AND  RHETORIC,  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLECfR 


COLUMBIA,  S.  C.: 

PKTER    B.     GLASS, 

(SUCCESSOR  TO  R.  L.  BRYAN.) 

1859. 


Copyright  secured  according  to  law. 


R.    W.    GIBBES,    STATE   PRINTER. 


TO   THE 


ALUMNI 


OF 


THE  SOUTH   CAROLINA  COLLEGE, 


THIS  VOLUME  IS  MOST  RESPECTFULLY  DEDICATED 


BY  THE  AUTHOR. 


PREFACE. 


I  have  undertaken  to  write  the  History  of  the  South  Caro- 
lina College.  It  has  now  been  in  existence  more  than  half 
a  century,  and  it  is  believed  that  such  a  History  would  be 
acceptable  to  the/  public.  I  have  endeavored  to  trace  it 
from  its  beginning  to  a  very  recent  period ;  to  give  the  story 
of  its  trials,  its  reverses,  and  its  triumphs.  Nothing  impor- 
tant to  the  truth  of  history  has  been  suppressed.  I  might 
have  sketched  a  more  beautiful  and  attractive  picture,  which 
would  have  been  looked  upon  with  a  higher  pride  and  ad- 
miration. I  might  have  passed  by  its  irregularities,  its  riots, 
its  rebellions,  and  the  many  disturbances  which  more  than 
once  shook  it  to  its  centre,  and  which,  perhaps,  the  honor  of 
the  College  demanded  should  have  been  buried  in  forgetful- 
ness'.  But  I  have  concluded  otherwise.  It  would  not  have 
been  the  history  of  the  College,  and  truth  would  have  been 
sacrificed  to  taste  and  sentiment.  But  the  College  will  not 
suffer  by  such  an  exposure.  The  honor  and  glory  of  the 
men  to  whom  its  government  was  committed,  are  only  en- 
hanced and  augmented,  as  their  wisdom  and  courage  were 
ever  sufficient  for  the  most  perilous  emergency.  Nor  will  it 
suffer  in  this  respect  by  a  comparison  with  others.  It  has 
nothing  to  fear  from  such  an  investigation.  No  feeling  of 
modesty  shall  constrain  me  from  saying,  that  from  the  first 
day  of  its  existence  to  the  present  moment,  no  body  of 
young  men  assembled  for  a  similar  purpose  in  any  of  the 
Institutions  of  the  country,  have  been  freer  from  irregulari- 
ties, exhibited  a  higher  honor  and  a  nobler  virtue,  reflected 
more  credit  upon  their  Alma  Mater,  and  vindicated  more 


yi  PREFACE. 

clearly  in  future  life  their  claim  to  the  respect  and  confi- 
dence of  the  public. 

But  the  reader  has  a  right  to  inquire  about  the  author ;  to 
be  informed  of  the  opportunities  which  he  has  enjoyed  for 
the  preparation  of  this  volume.  I  am  a  graduate  of  the 
College,  was  a  Trustee  for  part  of  two  terms — that  is  eight 
years — and  have  held  a  Professorship  in  it  for  seventeen 
years.  I  have  thus  been  connected  with  it  a  quarter  of  a 
century,  and  few  can  boast  a  longer  association.  I  had  a 
personal  acquaintance  with  all  the  Presidents,  and  with  all 
the  Professors  but  five  or  six.  The  Board  of  Trustees  placed 
their  records  at  my  disposal,  and  of  course  I  had  access  to 
the  Minutes  of  the  Faculty.  I  have  found  no  little  difficulty 
in  procuring  material  for  the  sketches  of  the  Faculty.  In 
only  a  few  instances  have  I  been  assisted  by  any  published 
biography.  I  was  forced,  therefore,  to  gather  material  for 
myself.  In  every  case  where  the  Presidents  and  Professors 
were  living,  I  have  appealed  directly  to  them,  and  I  must  here 
express  my  thanks  for  the  promptitude  with  which  they  an- 
swered my  questions.  In  the  case  of  the  dead,  I  addressed 
some  relative  or  acquaintance.  In  respect  to  some  of  the 
earlier  Professors,  my  only  resource  was  some  of  the  oldest 
graduates  of  the  College,  and  the  information  was  necessarily 
incomplete  and  defective.  These  inquiries  did  not  extend 
beyond  three  or  four  questions.  For  the  estimate  of  the 
men  themselves,  the  character  of  their  genius,  the  amount 
and  value  of  their  services  to  the  College,  ancl  to  the  cause 
of  learning,  I  alone  am  responsible.  I  have  taken  special 
pleasure  in  this  part  of  my  labors.  I  felt  that  a  deep  debt 
of  gratitude  was  due  them;  that  they  had  not  been  appre- 
ciated; and  I  was  anxious,  therefore,  to  exhibit  them  in 
something  like  their  true  light  before  the  people  of  Carolina. 
I  repeat,  the  Teacher  is  not  appreciated.  Retired  from  the 
world,  not  seen  in  the  busy  haunts  of  men,  and  only  leaving 


PREFACE.  Vll 

his  study  for  his  class-room,  who  thinks  of  his  toils,  and  the 
exhausting  labor  to  which,  day  and  night,  he  is  subjected! 
But  a  Cicero  has  said,  that  "to  teach  young  men,  to  instruct 
them,  to  train  them  to  every  department  of  duty,  is  an  em- 
ployment than  which  none  can  be  more  noble."  I  am  anxious 
that  the  youth  of  the  State,  and  particularly  the  alumni  of 
the  College,  shall  know  something  of  the  men  who  have 
labored  within  these  walls — who  have  contributed  to  make 
the  College  what  it  is,  and  that  they  shall  hold  them  in 
grateful  remembrance. 

The  reader  will  observe  that  my  sketches  are  introduced 
at  the  time  when  the  several  officers  left  the  service  of  the 
College.  I  might  have  grouped  them  together,  but  I  pre- 
ferred the  former  order,  because,  among  other  reasons,  it 
breaks  the  monotony  of  historical  narrative,  and  furnishes 
an  agreeable  episode.  It  would  have  given  me  great  pleasure 
to  have  embraced  in  my  sketches  the  Tutors  of  the  College  ; 
but  this  was  not  practicable.  Many  of  them  held  their 
offices  for  a  short  period,  and  are  now  either  dead  or  in  dis- 
tant lands,  and  it  was  not  possible  to  procure  material  for 
such  a  purpose.  Could  it  have  been  done,  it  would  have 
added  no  little  to  the  interest  of  the  work,  as  many  of  them 
were  men  of  talent  and  high  attainments,  and  rendered  a 
really  valuable  service.  I  have  therefore,  with  a  single 
exception,  restricted  myself  to  those  who  had  entire  charge 
of  a  department  of  instruction,  or  who  at  some  period  of 
their-  connection  became  members  of  the  Faculty. 

Some  may  suppose  that  I  should  have  taken  special  notice 
of  the  distinguished  alumni  of  the  College.  A  moment's 
reflection,  however,  will  show  that  this  was  impracticable. 
Their  name  is  legion,  and  what  limit  could  I  have  affixed  to 
such  a  labor !  Years  would  have  been  necessary  for  its  com- 
pletion, the  work  would  have  swollen  to  many  volumes,  and 
after  all  it  would  have  been  incomplete  and  unsatisfactory. 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

In  the  Appendix  I  have  given  a  brief  account  of  the 
Societies  of  the  College,  a  list  of  the  Trustees,  Faculty  and 
Graduates,  and  an  extract  from  the  Catalogue  of  1859. 
This  extract  is  designed  to  present  the  state  of  the  College 
at  the  period  of  the  publication  of  this  volume,  the  precise 
Course  of  Studies,  and  all  the  facilities  which  it  affords  for 
the  attainment  of  a  sound  education. 

The  Catalogue  of  Students  who  left  the  College  without  a 
degree  is  no  doubt  quite  imperfect,  but  yet  very  important.  It 
is  essential  to  a  right  conception  of  the  working  of  the  Col- 
lege, and  of  the  amount  of  education  which  it  has  actually 
accomplished.  Much  the  larger  number  were  in  it  for 
several  years,  and  availed  themselves  for  the  period  of  all 
the  facilities  which  it  affords;  and  the  College  therefore, 
may  justly  say,  that  though  not  their  mother,  it  gave  to 
them  during  their  years  of  feebleness  and  dependence,  much 
of  its  nursing  care  and  protection. 

To  be  indifferent  to  the  approbation  of  the  good  and  re" 
fleeting,  is  to  throw  aside  one  of  the  strongest  safeguards  of 
virtue  and  right  conduct ;  and,  affecting  no  such  feeling,  I 
commit  my  volume  to  the  public,  in  the  humble  hope  that 
it  may  meet  with  its  kindness  and  favor. 

M.  LABOEDE. 

COLUMBIA,  SOUTH  CAROLINA,  AUGUST,  1859. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Early  Acts  of  the  General  Assembly  for  the  Promotion  of 
Education — Acts  establishing  Colleges  at  Winnsborough, 
Charles  Town,  Ninety-Six,  Beaufort,  and  in  Pinckney  District 
— Act  establishing  a  College  at  Columbia — First  meeting  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees — Election  of  President  and  Professors 
— Course  of  Studies 13 

CHAPTER  II. 
t 

Opening  of  the  College — First  Students  admitted — Notice  of 

Professor  Early-— Notice  of  Professor  Hanford — Notice  of 
Professor  Hammond — First  Commencement — Form  of  Di- 
ploma .adopted — Notice  of  Mr.  Hooker — Letter  of  Gov. 
Drayton  to  Dr.  Maxcy — -Diploma  for  Higher  Degrees 33 

CHAPTER  III. 

Notice  of  Professor  Perault — Notice  of  Professor  Brown — 
Notice  of  Professor  Simons — Notice  of  Mr.  Gregg — Issue 
between  Dr.  Maxcy  and  the  Trustees — Great  Riot — Notice  of 
Professor  Blackburn 55 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Notice  of  Prof.  Montgomery — Notice  of  Prof.  Smith — Decline 
and  death  of  Dr.  Maxcy 93 

CHAPTER  V. 
Notice  of  Dr.  Maxcy— Notice  of  Dr.  Hanckel 107 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Election  of  Dr.  Cooper  to  the  Presidency — Faculty  climbing  a 
Ladder — Unusual  disorders  in  the  College — Notice  of  Prof. 
Vanuxem...  127 


X  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Report  of  a  Committee  of  Trustees  against  the  Commons 
System — Defence  of  College  Education — Presentment  of  Dr. 
Cooper  by  the  House  of  Representatives — Investigation  of 
the  charges  against  him — Resignation  of  the  Presidency  by 
Dr.  Cooper,  and  his  appointment  to  a  Lectureship — Dr. 
Henry  appointed  President  pro  tempore — Resignation  of  the 
President,  Professors  and  Tutors  of  the  College 149 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Notice  of  Dr.  Cooper — Notice  of  Dr.  Park — Notice  of  Dr. 
Wallace 163 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Prof.  Nott,  Chairman  of  the  Faculty — Election  of  new  Pro- 
fessors— Notice  of  R.  W.  Gibbes — Notice  of  Lewis  R.  Gibbes 
— -Notice  of  Bishop  Capers — Death  and  Notice  of  Professor 
Nott 189 

CHAPTER  X. 

Election  of  Dr.  Henry  to  the  Chair  of  Metaphysics,  Logic, 
Rhetoric  and  Belles  Lettres,  and  election  of  Rev.  William 
Hooper  to  the  Chair  of  Greek  and  Roman  Literature — 
Notice  of  Prof,  Stuart — Notice  of  Bishop  Elliott — Election 
of  Dr.  Henry,  President  pro  tempore — Notice  of  President 
Barnwell 221 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Dr.  Henry  elected  to  the  Presidency — Maximilian  LaBorde 
elected  to  the  Professorship  of  Logic,  Rhetoric  and  Belles 
Lettres — Tutorships  abolished — Abolition  of  the  Commons 
System,  and  the  establishment  of  the  Btirsary — Establish- 
ment of  Greek  Professorship— Provision  in  relation  to  at- 
tendance upon  the  Chapel  exercises  on  the  Sabbath — 
Presidency  of  College  declared  vacant — Dr.  Henry  elected 
Greek  Professor,  and  Hon.  William  C.  Preston  elected 
President-r-Resignation  of  Dr.  Hooper — Election  of  Charles 
P.  Pelham  to  the  Chair  of  Roman  Literature — Resignation 


CONTENTS.  XI 

of  Prof.  Twiss — Election  of  Matthew  J.  Williams  to  the 
Chair  of  Mathematics — Notice  of  Prof.  Twiss — Notice  of 
Dr.  Hooper — Board  of  Visitors  appointed  for  the  final  Ex- 
amination of  the  Senior  Class — Resignation  of  Professor 
Ellet — Election  of  Richard  T.  Brumby  to  the  Chair  of 
Chemistry — Notice  of  Prof.  Ellet — Report  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Gilman,  Chairman  of  Board  of  Visitors — Destruction  of  a 
College  by  fire,  and  issue  between  the  Faculty  and  Students 
— Resignation  of  Dr.  Thornwell — Resignation  of  Mr. 
Preston — Election  of  Dr.  Thornwell  to  the  Presidency—- 
Election of  Rev.  J.  L.  Reynolds  to  the  Chair  of  Belles 
Lettres  and  Elocution 245 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Notice  of  Mr.  Preston — Issue  between  Trustees  and  Students 
in  relation  to  the  Commons— Plan  Q$  written  Examinations — 
Withdrawal  of  Students  from  College  on  account  of  Com- 
mons   283 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Report  of  Committee  of  Trustees  providing  for  licensing 
Boarding  Houses  on  certain  conditions,  and  continuance  of 
the  Bursary  under  new  regulations — New  system  in  reference 
to  Commencement,  Honors,  and  Distinctions,  and  the  rising 
Examination  of  the  three  under-classes — Resignation  of  Prof. 
Williams,  and  notice  of  him — 'Resolutions  of  Faculty  regu- 
lating the  Stands  of  the  Students — Great  Fire  in  the  College 
— Riot,  and  issue  between  the  Faculty  and  Students — 
Retirement  of  Dr.  Thornwell  from  the  College 307 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Notice  of  Dr.  Thornwell — Entrance  of  Mr.  McCay  upon  the 
Presidency — Disturbance  in  the  College — Suspension  of  the 
Exercises — Professor  John  LeConte  invited  to  discharge  the 
duties  of  Professor  Brumby's  department— William  J.  Rivers 
elected  Greek  Professor — Professor  Brumby's  resignation — 
Election  of  Professors  John  LeConte  and  Rivers  permanently 
— Election  of  Professors  Joseph  LeConte  and  Robert  W. 
Barnwell,  Jr 329 


ill  CONTENTS, 

'  CHAPTER  XV. 

Notice  of  Dr.  Henry — Notice  of  Professor  Brumby 363 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Notice  of  Dr.  Lieber — Riot  in  College — Resignation  of  Presi- 
dent and  Professors — Re-election  of  Professors — Notice  of 
Professor  Pelham — Election  of  Hon.  A.  B.  Longstreet  to  the 
Presidency- — Election  of  Charles  S.  Venable  to  the  Chair  of 
Mathematics 395 

APPENDIX. 

Societies  of  the  College — Constitution  of  the  Board  of  Trustees, 
and  Catalogue  of  Trustees,  Presidents,  Professors  and 
Tutors — Treasurers  and  Librarians — Alumni — Persons  upon 
whom  Honorary  Degrees  have  been  conferred  besides  the 
Alumni — Names  of  Students  admitted  to  College  who  left 
without  a  Diploma — Honors  awarded  from  the  period  of  the 
first  Commencement — Extract  from  Catalogue  of  1859 427 


INTRODUCTORY. 


CHAPTER  I. 

• 

It  is  a  gratifying  fact  in  the  history  of  Carolina, 
that  as  soon  as  the  English  settlers  placed  their  feet 
upon  its  soil,  they  gave  the  most  earnest  attention  to 
the  business  of  education.  By  the  efforts  of  Rev. 
Thomas  Bray,  the  Bishop  of  London's  commissary  in 
Maryland,  and  from  the  bounty  of  the  Lords'  proprie- 
tors and  contributions  of  the  Carolinians,  the  first 
public  library  was  formed  in  Charles  Town;  and  the 
Assembly,  by  special  Act  in  1698,  placed  it  under  the 
care  of  the  Episcopal  minister.  It  is  also  worthy  of 
note,  that  the  society  for  propagating  the  gospel  sent 
out  missionaries  not  only  to  preach,  but  to  "  encourage 
the  setting  up  of  schools  for  the  teaching  of  children."* 

The  Government  of  Carolina  then  in  the  early 
periods  of  its  history,  seems  to  have  been  fully  im- 
pressed with  the  importance  of  making  provision  for 
the  education  of  the  people.  This  is  exhibited  in  the 
many  Acts  of  the  General  Assembly.  In  1710,  an 
Act  was  passed  to  found  a  Free  School  for  the  use  of 
the  inhabitants  of  South  Carolina ;  "for  the  instruction 
of  the  youth  of  this  Province  in  grammar  and  other 

*  Vid.  Rivers'  History  of  South  Carolina. 


14  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

arts  and  sciences,  and  useful  learning;  and  also  in  the 
principles  of  the  Christian  religion."  This  free  school 
never  went  into  operation  in  the  form  provided  in  the 
Act,  and  further  legislation  was  deemed  necessary. 
Accordingly  another  Act  was  passed  in  1712,  entitled 
"An  Act  for  the  encouragement  of  Learning;"  and 
the  preamble  declares  that  its  main  purpose  is  to 
supply  the  defects  of  the  former.  But  by  another  Act 
passed,  also}  in  1712,  called  "An  Act  for  founding  and 
erecting  a  Free  School  in  Charles  Town,"  provision  is 
made  for  the  education  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Province  on  a  scale  more  extended  than  at  any  pre* 
vious  period.  Mr.  John  Douglass  is  declared  in  the 
Act  Master  of  the  said  school,  by  the  name  and  title 
of  Preceptor  or  Teacher  of  grammar,  and  the  other 
arts  and  sciences  to  be  taught  in  the  Free  School  of 
Charles  Town,  for  the  Province  of  South  Carolina.  I 
trust  that  my  readers  will  pardon  me  for  thus  in- 
troducing to  them  this  ancient  school-master,  who 
occupies  so  proud  a  position  in  the  history  of  the 
education  of  the  State.  Nor  were  his  attainments  to 
be  of  a  low  order.  Our  venerable  fathers  fixed  a  classi- 
cal standard ;  they  had  a  high  mark ;  they  were  not 
content  with  the  English  alone.  The  Act  requires 
that  the  Master  shall  be  capable  of  teaching  the  Latin 
and  Greek  languages,  and  that  he  shall  catechise  and 
instruct  the  youth  in  the  principles  of  the  Christian 
religion,  as  professed  in  the  Church  of  England.  Nor 
was  practical  education  neglected ;  for  the  Act  provides 
that  a  fit  person  shall  be  appointed  by  the  Commis- 
sioners "to  teach  writing,  arithmetic  and  merchant's 
accounts ;  and  also  the  art  of  navigation  and  surveying, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  15 

and  other  useful  and  practical  parts  of  the  mathe- 
matics." It  was  the  design  of  the  Assembly  to  furnish 
the  means  of  education  to  the  whole  youth  of  the 
Province,  and  to  this  end  it  was  enacted,  that  as  soon 
as  a  school-master  is  settled  in  any  other  parish  of  this 
Province,  such  school-master  shall  receive  a  specified 
sum  of  money  per  annum,  out  of  the  public  treasury, 
in  quarterly  payments. 

In  the  House  Journals  of  1723,  it  is  recorded  that 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Thomas  Mo/rit  made  proposals  for  a 
College  on  the  7th  December,  1723.  Whether  he  pre- 
sented a  digested  plan  for  such  an  higher  education  as 
is  now  embraced  under  the  term,  or  what  was  the 
particular  character  of  the  suggestion,  I  know  not. 
But  the  record  proves  that  there  was  a  great  want  of 
funds  at  this  time  for  carrying  on  the  free  schools,  and 
that  it  was  necessary  to  resort  to  legal  measures 
against  certain  persons  to  obtain  the  amount  required. 
This  was  reason  enough  to  stay  the  hand  of  the  Assem- 
bly, if  any  more  thorough  and  extensive  system  of 
education  was  contemplated.  The  fact  has  some  impor- 
tance imparted  to  it  by  the  consideration,  that  it  is 
the  first  time  the  word  College  occurs  in  our  history. 

It  is  a  fact  worthy  of  mention,  while  giving  a  brief 
summary  of  the  earlier  educational  movements  in  the 
State,  that,  through  the  kindness  of  Dr.  Gibbes,  I  am 
in  possession  of  a  manuscript,  entitled  "  A  Bill  for 
founding,  erecting  and  endowing  Public  Schools,  and 
a  College  for  the  education  of  the  youth  of  this 
Province,"  which  was  drawn  in  the  time  of  Lieutenant 
Governor  Bull,  and  a  considerable  portion  of  which  is 
in  the  hand- writing  of  John  Rutledge.  It  is  probable, 


1C  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

nay  almost  certain,  that  the  scheme  was  a  conception 
of  this  great  man  himself.  It  was  designed  to  he 
submitted  to  the  Lieutenant  Governor,  and  His  Ma- 
jesty's Council  and  the  Common's  House  of  Assembly; 
but  whether  this  was  done,  and  what  are  the  particu- 
lars of  its  history,  I  am  unable  to  declare.  After 
making  full  provision  for  public  schools,  the  bill  then 
provides  for  founding  and  endowing  a  College  in  the 
Province,  for  the  appointment  of  Commissioners,  and 
of  a  Board  of  Trustees,  of  which  the  Governor  and 
the  Speaker  of  the  Common's  House  of  Assembly 
were  to  be  ex-officio  members,  to  be  called  "  the  Trus- 
tees of  the  College  of  South  Carolina."  The  following 
is  the  corps  of  instructors,  with  the  several  branches 
of  knowledge  which  they  are  required  to  teach;  a 
President,  who  shall  be  Professor  of  Divinity,  Moral 
Philosophy  and  of  the  Greek  and  Hebrew  languages, 
at  a  salary  of  three  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  sterling 
per  annum;  a  Professor  of  the  Civil  and  Common 
Law,  and  of  the  Municipal  Laws  of  the  Province,  with 
a  salary  of  two  hundred  pounds ;  a  Professor  of 
Physic,  Anatomy,  Botany  and  Chemistry,  two  hun- 
dred pounds ;  a  Professor  of  Mathematics  and  of 
Natural  and  Experimental  Philosophy,  two  hundred 
pounds ;  a  Professor  of  History,  Chronology  and  the 
Modern  Languages,  two  hundred  pounds ;  and  it  was 
provided  that  the  President  of  the  College  shall  be 
of  the  religion  of  the  Church  of  England.  To  John 
Rutledge  then,  as  well  as  I  can  judge  from  the  histori- 
cal lights  upon  the  matter,  is  due  the  credit  of  having 
made  the  suggestion.  It  was  proposed  to  locate  it  in 
Charles  Town,  and  I  am  unable  to  say  whether  this 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  17 

scheme  has  any  connection  with  the  Act  to  be  noticed 
presently,  which  founded  several  Colleges  in  different 
parts  of  the  country. 

Passing  by  the  efforts  of  individuals  and  the  results 
of  private  enterprise,  and  confining  myself  to  legisla- 
tive enactment,  the  next  Act  to  be  noticed  is  "  An  Act 
for  the  encouragement  of  Arts  and  Sciences,"  passed  in 
March,  1784.  The  purpose  of  this  Act  is  to  secure 
the  copy-right  of  books  to  the  authors  and  proprietors, 
for  a'term  of  years,  and  to  protect  the  public  against 
unreasonable  prices.  At  the  session  of  1785,  an  Act 
was  passed  which  probably  was  more  important  to 
the  educational  interest  of  the  State  than  any  which 
preceded  it ;  this  is  the  "  Act  for  establishing  a  College 
at  the  Village  of  Winnsborough,  a  College  in  or  near 
the  City  of  Charles  Town,  and  a  College  at  Ninety-Six." 
The  first  two  have  had  a  long  career  of  usefulness  and 
honor.  Each  has  contributed  its  full  part  to  the  educa- 
tion of  the  people,  and,  being  now  in  active  operation 
under  the  management  of  faculties  which  would  do 
honor  to  any  Institution,  may  we  not  hope  that  a 
future  of  even  still  greater  brilliancy  is  before  them  ! 
The  College  at  Cambridge  (Ninety-Six)  seems  to  have 
been  a  failure.  In  a  few  years  after  it  was  incorporated, 
the  Legislature  gave  to  its  Trustees  full  power  and 
authority  "  to  establish  and  draw  a  lottery  for  the 
purpose  of  raising  a  sum  for  the  benefit  of  said  Insti- 
tution;" and,  in  the  year  1803,  certain  persons  were 
authorized  to  sell  and  dispose  of  all  the  lands,  town 
lots,  buildings  and  other  property,  belonging  to  the 
College  of  Cambridge,  with  the  view  of  paying  the 
debts,  and  to  apply  the  surplus,  if  any,  towards  the 


18  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

establishment  of  Grammar  Schools  in  the  District  of 
Abbeville.  In  1795,  the  Legislature  passed  "An  Act 
to  vest  certain  lands,  in  the  District  of  Beaufort,  in 
Trustees,  for  the  purpose  of  building  and  endowing  a 
College  in  the  Town  of  Beaufort,  and  for  other  pur- 
poses." It  appears  that  the  seminaries  of  education, 
which  had  been  established  in  the  interior,  had 
failed  thus  far  to  accomplish  the  purpose  for  which 
they  were  designed;  and,  in  1797,  a  College  was  in- 
corporated in  Pinckney  District  by  the  name*  and 
style  of  "  the  College  of  Alexandria."  The  preamble 
to  the  Act  declares  this  failure,  and  regrets  that  "  the 
rising  youth,  after  obtaining  a  knowledge  of  the  Latin 
and  Greek  languages,  are  obliged  to  resort  to  the  Col- 
leges in  other  States  to  acquire  a  knowledge  of  the 
arts  and  sciences  to  fit  them  for  future  life."  But 
where  is  the  College  of  Alexandria  ?  where  is  the  roll 
of  its  Alumni?  It  did  not  meet  the  wants  of  the 
State,  and  something  more  was  necessary  to  prevent 
"  resort  to  the  Colleges  in  other  States."  But  what- 
ever may  have  been  the  extent  of  failure  in  the  efforts 
made  to  diffuse  the  blessing  of  education  throughout 
the  State,  our  wise  legislators  suffered  no  abatement 
in  their  ardor,  and  were  stimulated  to  higher  and  more 
energetic  action.  There  was  one  experiment  yet  to 
be  tried,  and  that  was  that  the  State  should  have  a 
College  of  its  own.  There  could  be  no  lack  of  funds,  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Seminaries  previously  incorporated. 
The  course  of  instruction  to  be  pursued  was  to  be  of 
that  character  which  was  best  suited  to  the  wants  of 
the  people ;  it  was  to  be  governed  by  a  Board  of  Trustees 
appointed  by  the  Legislature,  and  the  Trustees  were 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  19 

to  elect  the  faculty.  Such  a  compensation  was  to  be 
allowed  the  Professors  as  would  attract  to  the  College 
men  of  science  and  learning.  Earnestly  engaged  as  the 
public  mind  was  upon  the  subject  of  education,  it  is 
not  improbable  that  the  idea  of  a  State  Institution 
was  indulged  by  many,  as  we  know  that  many  years 
before,  it  was  suggested  by  John  Rutledge ;  but,  as  far 
as  the  records  prove  any  thing,  to  Governor  Drayton 
belongs  the  credit  of  having  made  the  suggestion  at  this 
time.  In  his  Message  to  the  Legislature  in  December, 
1801,  he  recommends  the  establishment  of  a  State 
College,  and  the  committee  to  whom  the  recommenda- 
tion was  referred,  reported  favorably. 

The  following  extract  from  his  Message  will  not  be 
uninteresting.  The  Message  is  dated  November  23d, 
1801.  After  making  certain  suggestions  in  reference 
to  the  policy  of  the  State,  he  remarks  that,  "propor- 
tionally advantageous,  also,  to  the  citizens  of  the  State, 
will  be  any  attention  which  you  will  bestow  upon  the 
education  of  her  youth.  At  the  commencement  of 
your  last  session  I  took  pleasure  in  submitting  this  to 
your  consideration,  and  I  now  repeat  the  same  to  you 
as  a  matter  claiming  your  serious  and  early  attention. 
Were  a  person  to  look  over  the  laws  of  the  State,  he 
would  find  that  five  Colleges  are  incorporated  therein ; 
and  did  his  inquiries  proceed  no  further,  he  would 
naturally  imagine  we  had  already  arrived  at  an  envi- 
able excellence  in  literature.  He  would  perceive  a  Col- 
lege instituted  at  Charles  Town,  one  at  Cambridge,  one 
at  Winnsborough,  one  at  Beaufort,  and  one  by  the  name 
of  Alexandria  College,  in  the  upper  part  of  the  State — 
all  of  which  are  empowered  to  confer  degrees.  But 


20  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

were  he  to  direct  his  inquiries  further  concerning 
them,  he  would  find  that  Cambridge  and  Winns- 
borough  Colleges  were  soon  discontinued  through  a 
want  of  funds;  and,  although  the  last  mentioned 
one  has  been  lately  renewed  through  the  exertions  of 
the  Mount  Zion  Society,  it  is  still  nothing  but  an 
elementary  school,  and  one  which  can  never  rise  to 
eminence  as  a  College  from  its  present  support.  Beau- 
fort and  Alexandria  Colleges  are  as  yet  scarcely 
known  but  in  the  land  which  incorporated  them,  and 
Charleston  College  is  at  present  not  entitled  to  an 
higher  appellation  than  that  of  a  respectable  Academy 
or  Grammar  School." 

"Could  the  attention  of  the  Legislature  be  directed 
to  this  important  object,  and  a  State  College  be  raised 
and  fostered  by  its  hand  at  Columbia,  or  some  central 
and  healthy  part  of  the  State,  under  proper  directors 
and  trustees,  including  as  ex-officio  members  the  Exe- 
cutive and  Judiciary  of  the  State,  and  any  other  suit- 
able public  officers,  there  could  be  no  doubt  of  its  rising 
into  eminence,  because  being  supported  at  first  by  the 
public  funds,  the  means  could  not  be  wanting  of 
inviting  and  providing  for  learned  and  respectable 
Professors  in  the  various  branches  of  science.  Well 
chosen  libraries  would  be  procured,  and  philosophical 
apparatus  lead  the  pursuits  of  our  youth  from  theory 
to  practice.  The  friendships  of  young  men  would 
thence  be  promoted  and  strengthened  throughout  the 
State,  and  our  political  union  be  much  advanced 
thereby." 

From  the  memoir  of  Chancellor  DeSaussure,  by 
Chancellor.  Harper,  I  make  the  following  extract:" 


HISTOKY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  21 

"In  1801,  as  a  member  of  the  Legislature,  he  (Mr. 
DeSaussure)  took  a  zealous  and  active  part  in  pro- 
moting the  act  for  the  establishment  of  the  South 
Carolina  College,  and  few  contributed  more  to  its 
success;  an  act  of  more  lasting  benefit  to  the  State, 
more  honorable  to  its  character,  and  more  promotive 
of 'its  true  interests,  than  any  which  its  Legislature 
ever  passed.  This  measure  originated  in  the  contest 
which  had  arisen  between  the  upper  and  lower  country 
of  the  State,  with  respect  to  representation  in  the 
Legislature.  The  upper  country,  which  at  the  adop- 
tion of  the  Constitution  of  1791  was  comparatively 
poor  and  unpeopled,  had  allotted  to  it  by  the  provisions 
of  the  Constitution  a  much  smaller  representation. 
It  had  now  grown  in  wealth,  far  out-numbered  the 
lower  country  in  its  population,  and  imperatively 
demanded  a  reform  in  the  representation.  This  the 
people  of  the  lower  country  feared  to  grant  on  the 
ground  of  the  general  deficiency  of  education  and 
intelligence  in  the  upper  country,  which  would  render 
it  incompetent  to  exercise  wisely  and  justly  the  power 
which  such  a  reform  would  place  in  its  hands.  It 
was  to  remedy  this  deficiency  that  it  was  proposed  to 
establish  a  College  at  Columbia.  The  Act  was  passed 
not  without  difficulty,  nor  without  the  strenuous  oppo- 
sition of  many  whom  it  was  intended  more  especially 
to  benefit.  There  is  no  citizen  of  the  State,  and  still 
more  who  has  directly  and  personally  received  the 
benefits  of  the  Institution,  whose  deepest  gratitude  is 
not  due  to  every  one  who  contributed  in  any  degree  to 
the  success  of  the  measure."  And  here  I  must  take 
occasion  to  add,  that  from  this  period  to  that  of  his 


22  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

death,  in  March  1839,  Chancellor  DeSaussure  took  the 
liveliest  interest  in  the  fortunes  of  the  College.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  first  Board  of  Trustees,  and  for 
upwards  of  thirty  years  rendered  the  most  efficient  ser- 
vice. Through  the  kindness  of  Professor  Rivers,  I  am 
enabled  to  give  the  names  of  the  entire  committee  that 
reported  the  Bill.  The  committee  then,  to  whom  the 
Message  of  the  Governor  recommending  the  establish- 
ment of  a  State  College  was  referred,  consisted  of  Mr. 
Thos.  R.  Smith,  Col.  W.  B.  Mitchell,  Col.  Mays,  Mr. 
Horry,  Thomas  Smith,  Col.  Kershaw,  Mr.  Bennett, 
Gen.  Anderson  and  Mr.  DeSaussure.  These  gentle- 
men deserve  a  place  in  the  history  of  the  College. 
The  opposition  to  its  establishment  did  not  cease  with 
the  passage  of  the  Act,  for  we  read  on  the  Journals  of 
the  House  at  the  session  of  1802,  that  two  petitions 
for  its  repeal,  "from  many  inhabitants"  of  an  up- 
country  district,  were  presented  and  referred  to  a 
committee  consisting  of  Mr.  Falconer,  Major  Hampton, 
Mr.  Evans,  Mr.  Jno.  Richardson  and  Dr.  Fuller.  To 
be  identified  with  a  great  measure  which  has  produced 
such  incalculable  benefit,  which  has  refined  and  edu- 
cated a  whole  community,  and  shed  such  lustre  upon 
our  beloved  commonwealth,  is  a  glory  far  greater  than 
that  which  crowns  the  march  and  triumphs  of  mighty 
conquerors.  I  give  entire  the  Act  incorporating  the 
College : 

"AN  ACT  TO  ESTABLISH  A  COLLEGE  AT  COLUMBIA. 

"  Whereas,  The  proper  education  of  youth  contri- 
butes greatly  to  the  prosperity  of  society,  and  ought 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  23 

always  to  be  an  object  of  legislative  attention ;  and 
whereas,  the  establishment  of  a  College  in  a  central 
part  of  the  State,  where  all  its  youth  may  be  educated, 
will  highly  promote  the  instruction,  the  good  order 
and  the  harmony  of  the  whole  community  : 

"I.  Be  it  therefore  enacted,  by  the  Honorable  the 
Senate  and  the  House  of  Representatives,  now  met 
and  sitting  in  General  Assembly,  and  by  the  authority 
of  the  same,  That  his  Excellency  the  Governor,  his 
Honor  the  Lieutenant  Governor,  the  Honorable  the 
President  of  the  Senate,  and  the  Speaker  of  the  House 
of  Representatives,  the  Honorable  the  Associate  Judges 
of  the  Court  of  Equity,  shall  be,  ex-officio,  together 
with  General  Charles  C.  Pinckney,  H.  W.  DeSaussure, 
Thomas  Taylor,  the  Reverend  D.  E.  Dunlap,  the 
Reverend  Mr.  John  Brown,  of  Lancaster,  Wade 
Hampton,  John  Chesnut,  James  B.  Richardson,  Dr. 
Isaac  Alexander,  Henry  Dana  Ward,  the  Rev.  Samuel 
W.  Yongue,  William  Falconer,  and  Bartlee  Smyth, 
Trustees,  to  continue  in  office  for  the  term  of  four 
years  from  the  passing  of  this  Act,  and  at  the  expira- 
tion of  the  said  four  year*,  and  every  four  years  there- 
after, the  Legislature  to  nominate  thirteen  Trustees  to 
succeed  the  said  thirteen  persons  above  named,  one 
body  politic  and  corporate,  in  deed  and  in  law,  by  the 
name  of  'The  Trustees  of  the  South  Carolina 
College;'  and  that  by  the  said  name  they  and  their 
successors  shall  and  may  have  perpetual  succession, 
and  be  able  and  capable  in  law  to  have,  receive  and 
enjoy,  to  them  and  their  successors,  lands,  tenements 
and  hereditaments,  of  any  kind  or  value,  in  fee,  or  for 


24  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLL1GE. 

life  or  years,  and  personal  property  of  any  kind  what- 
soever, and  also  all  sums  of  money  of  any  amount 
whatsoever,  which  may  be  granted  or  bequeathed  to 
them  for  the  purpose  of  building,  erecting,  endowing 
and  supporting  the  said  College  in  the  town  of 
Columbia. 

"  II.  And  be  it  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid, 
That  there  shall  be  a  stated  meeting  of  the  said  Trus- 
tees on  the  first  Wednesday  in  December  in  each  year, 
during  the  session  of  the  Legislature;  and  that  the 
President  of  the  said  College,  and  four  of  the  said 
Trustees,  shall  have  full  power  to  call  occasional 
meetings  of  the  Board  whenever  it  shall  appear  to 
them  necessary;  and  that  at  all  stated  meetings  the 
President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  aforesaid,  and  ten 
of  the  Trustees,  shall  be  the  number  to  constitute  a 
quorum,  and  to  fill  up,  by  ballot,  any  vacancies  that 
may  occur  in  the  said  Trustees,  except  those  who  are 
hereby  declared  to  be  Trustees  ex-officio;  and  the 
President  and  six  of  the  other  Trustees  shall  be  the 
number  to  constitute  an  occasional  meeting;  and  the 
said  Trustees,  or  a  quorum  of  them,  being  regularly 
convened,  shall  be  capable  of  doing  or  transacting  all 
the  business  and  concerns  of  the  said  College;  but 
more  particularly  of  electing  all  the  customary  neces- 
sary officers  of  the  said  institution,  of  fixing  their 
several  salaries,  of  removing  any  of  them  for  neglect 
or  misconduct  in  office,  of  prescribing  the  course  of 
studies  to  be  pursued  by  the  students ;  and,  in  general, 
of  framing  and  enacting  all  such  ordinances  and  by- 
laws as  shall  appear  to  them  necessary  for  the  good 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  25 

government  of  the  said  College :  Provided  the  same  be 
not  repugnant  to  the  laws  of  the  State  nor  of  the 
United  States. 

"III.  And  be  it  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid. 
That  the  head  of  the  said  College  shall  be  styled  '  The 
President/  and  the  masters '  thereof  shall  be  styled 
6 The  Professors;'  but  Professors,  while  they  remain 
such,  shall  never  be  capable  of  holding  the  office  of 
Trustee ;  and  the  President  and  Professors,  or  a  ma- 
jority of  them,  shall  be  styled  '  The  Faculty  of  the 
College;'  which  Faculty  shall  have  the  power  of 
enforcing  the  ordinances  and  by-laws  adopted  by  the 
Trustees  for  the  government  of  the  pupils,  by  reward- 
ing or  censuring  them,  and  finally,  by  suspending  such 
of  them  as,  after  repeated  admonitions,  shall  continue 
disobedient  or  refractory,  until  a  determination  of  a 
quorum  of  Trustees  can  be  had;  but  that  it  shall  be 
only  in  the  power  of  a  quorum  of  Trustees,  at  their 
stated  meeting,  to  expel  any  student  of  the  said 
College. 

"IV.  And  be  it  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid, 
That  the  Trustees  of  the  said  College  shall  and  may 
have  a  common  seal  for  the  business  of  themselves  and 
their  successor,  with  liberty  to  change  or  alter  the 
same,  from  time  to  time,  as  they  shall  think  proper; 
and  that,  by  their  aforesaid  name,  they  and  their  suc- 
cessors shall  and  may  be  able  to  implead  and  be 
impleaded,  answer  and  be  answered  unto,  defend  and 
be  defended,  in  all  courts  of  law  within  this  State; 
and  to  grant,  bargain,  sell  or  assign  any  lands,  tene- 
ments, hereditaments,  goods  or  chattels;  and  to  act 
and  do  all  things  whatsoever,  for  the  benefit  of  the 


26  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

said  College,  in  as  ample  a  manner  as  any  person  or 
body  politic  or  corporate  can  or  may  by  law. 

"V.  And  be  it  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid, 
That  the  Trustees  of  the  said  College  are  hereby 
authorized  and  empowered  to  draw  out  of  the  Treasury 
of  this  State  the  sum  of  fifty  thousand  dollars,  to  be 
appropriated  to  the  purpose  of  erecting  a  building  of 
brick  or  stone,  and  covered  with  tile  or  slate,  suitable 
to  the  accommodation  of  the  students  of  the  said 
College,  and  suitable  for  fully  carrying  on  the  educa- 
tion of  the  said  students,  and  for  the  erection  of  such 
other  buildings  as  may  be  necessary  for  the  use  of  the 
said  College ;  and  that  the  Comptroller  be  authorized 
and  empowered,  upon  application  of  the  said  Trustees, 
to  pay  over  to  said  Trustees  the  sum  of  six  thousand 
dollars,  yearly  and  every  year,  to  be  appropriated  to 
the  purpose  of  paying  the  salaries  of  the  Faculty  of 
the  said  College,  and  for  the  future  support  of  the 
same;  and  that  the  Trustees  of  the  said  College  shall 
be  accountable  for  the  proper  appropriation  of  the  said 
monies  to  the  Comptroller,  who  shall  report  thereon 
annually  to  the  Legislature. 

"VI.  And  be  it  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid, 
That  this  Act  shall  be  deemed  a  public  Act,  and  as 
such  shall  be  judicially  taken  notice  of,  without  special 
pleading,  in  all  the  courts  of  law  or  equity  within  this 
State. 

"VII.  And  be  it  further  enacted  by  the  authority 
aforesaid,  That  the  said  Trustees,  with  the  concurrence 
of  the  Commissioners  of  Columbia,  shall  be  empowered 
to  make  choice  of  any  square  or  squares,  yet  unsold, 
in  the  town  of  Columbia,  for  the  purpose  of  erecting 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  27 

said  College,  and  the  buildings  attached  thereto,  having 
strict  reference  to  every  advantage  and  convenience 
necessary  for  such  institution. 

"In  the  Senate  the  nineteenth  day  of  December,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one 
thousand  eight  hundred  and  one,  and  in  the  twenty-sixth  year  of  the 
Independence  of  the  United  States  of  America. 

"JOHN  WARD, 

"President  of  the  Senate. 

"THEODORE  GAILLARD, 

"  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives." 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  was 
held  at  the  house  of  his  Excellency  the  Governor, 
in  the  City  of  Charleston,  on  Friday,  12th  of  February, 
1802,  and  the  following  members  were  present : — His 
Excellency  the  Governor,  Judges  Rutledge,  Johnson 
and  Trezevant,  General  Charles  C.  Pinckney,  H.  W. 
DeSaussure,  Thomas  Taylor,  Wade  Hampton,  Henry 
Dana  Ward  and  the  Rev.  D.  E.  Dunlap.  As  a  majority 
of  the  Board  was  not  present,  the  meeting  was 
adjourned  to  the  succeeding  Sunday,  the  14th  inst. 
The  Board  met  agreeably  to  appointment,  and  a 
majority  being  present,  proceeded  to  business.  His 
Excellency  Governor  Drayton  was  elected  President. 
It  would  encumber  this  narrative  too  much  if  I  were 
to  give  in  lengthened  detail  the  proceedings  at  the 
several  meetings  ;  but  it  is  an  act  of  simple  justice  to 
declare  that  the  Trustees  went  to  work  with  becoming 
earnestness  of  spirit.  At  this  meeting  a  committee 
was  appointed  to  report  upon  a  site  for  the  College, 
and  the  Governor  was  instructed  to  advertise  for 
plans.  There  seems  to  have  been  considerable  diffi- 
culty in  procuring  a  suitable  site ;  but  finally,  in  Decem- 


28  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

ber,  the  spot  where  the  buildings  are  now  located  was 
selected  by  the  Board.  The  plan  adopted  was  "  founded 
on  some  principles  taken  from  the  plan  offered  by  Mr. 
Mills  and  Mr.  Clark,"  and  the  reward  offered  by  the 
Board  was  equally  divided  between  these  gentlemen. 
A  special  committee,  of  which  Colonel  Taylor  and 
Col.  Hampton  were  leading  members,  was  appointed 
to  contract  for  building  the  College  agreeably  to  the 
plan  adopted,  and  in  April,  1803,  the  committee 
reported  the  contract  to  the  Board,  which  was  read 
and  confirmed.  At  the  November  meeting  it  was 
resolved  that  the  President  of  the  College  shall  re- 
ceive a  salary  of  $2,500  per  annum,  that  the  Professor 
of  Mathematics  and  Natural  Philosophy  shall  receive 
$1,500  per  annum,  and  that  each  of  the  other  Professors 
shall  receive  $1,000  per  annum ;  that  the  President  shall 
be  provided  with  a  suitable  dwelling  house,  and  that 
each  of  the  Professors  shall  have  boarding  and  lodging 
in  the  College.  It  was  also  resolved  that  the  President 
of  the  Board  be  requested  to  write  to  the  Principals  of 
the  various  Colleges  in  America,  and  to  all  •  others  to 
whom  he  may  think  fit  to  apply,  requesting  them  to 
recommend  such  persons  as  they  think  best  qualified 
to  fill  the  offices  of  Principal  and  Professors  in  the 
South  Carolina  College.  The  meeting  of  April  28, 
1804,  is  one  of  the  most  important  in  the  history 
of  the  College,-  as  that  day  was  set  apart  for  the 
election  of  a  President  and  Professors.  The  Reve- 
rend Jonathan  Maxcy  was  elected  on  that  day,  with 
the  condition  that  he  enter  on  his  duties  "on  the 
Monday  next  before  the  meeting  of  the  adjourned 
Court  at  Columbia  in  November  next,"  and  John 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  29 

McLean  was  elected  Professor  of  Mathematics  and 
Natural  Philosophy.,  with  instructions  to  enter  upon 
his  office  at  the  same  time.  At  an  adjourned  meeting 
on  the  next  day,  the  Eeverend  Robert  Wilson  was 
elected  First  Professor  of  Languages,  and  Enoch  Han- 
ford  was  elected  Second  Professor  of  Languages.  On 
the  5th  December  1804,  Dr.  Maxcy  was  elected 
a  Trustee,  in  place  of  H.  W.  DeSaussure,  resigned. 
This  fact  is  not  unworthy  of  note,  as  it  estab- 
lished other  and  not  less  important  relations  between 
that  remarkable  man  and  the  College,  and  gave  a  new 
field  for  the  display  of  that  genius  which  impressed 
itself  so  signally  upon  all  who  came  in  contact 
with  it.  On  the  day  succeeding  his  election,  he  being 
present,  the  Board  took  under  consideration  the  Report 
of  the  Committee  on  the  Rules  and  Regulations  of  the 
College.  There  is  but  one  portion  of  it  to  which  I 
think  proper  to  call  attention,  and  this  is  Art.  4  : 
Classes,  Admission,  Studies  and  Exercises.  This  is 
important,  as  it  fixes  a  standard  of  education  in  that 
day  according  to  the  conception  of  our  fathers,  and, 
as  I  think  too,  with  all  due  allowance  to  the  progress 
of  the  age,  a  standard  sufficiently  elevated  as  not  to 
be  despised.  I  give  the  entire  article : 

"  SEC.  1.  There  shall  be  established  in  the  College 
four  classes,  which  in  their  succession  shall  bear  the 
usual  titles  of  Freshman,  Sophomore,  Junior  and 
Senior. 

"  SEC.  2.  For  admission  to  the  Freshman  Class,  a 
candidate  shall  be  able  to  render  from  Latin  into 
English,  Cornelius  Nepos,  Sallust,  Caesar's  Commen- 


30  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

taries  and  Virgil's  ^Eneid ;  to  make  grammatical  Latin 
of  the  exercises  in  Mairs'  Introduction;  to  translate 
into  English  any  passage  from  the  Evangelist  St. 
John,  in  the  Greek  Testament ;  to  give  a  grammatical 
analysis  of  the  words,  and  have  a  general  knowledge 
of  the  English  Grammar  ;  write  a  good,  legible  hand, 
spell  correctly,  and  be  well  acquainted  with  Arith- 
metic as  far  as  includes  the  Rule  of  Proportion. 

"  SEC.  3.  Candidates  for  admission  to  any  of  the 
higher  Classes,  in  addition  to  the  foregoing  qualifi- 
cations, shall  be  examined  in  all  the  studies  that  have 
,been  pursued  by  that  Class  since  the  commencement 
of  the  Freshman  year. 

"  SEC.  4.  The  studies  of  the  Freshman  year  shall 
be  the  Greek  'Testament,  Xenophon's  Cyropedia, 
Mairs'  Introduction,  Virgil,  Cicero's  Orations,  Roman 
Antiquities,  Arithmetic,  English  Grammar,  and  Sher- 
ridan's  Lectures  on  Elocution.  A  part  of  every  day's 
Latin  lesson  shall  be  written  in  a  fair  hand,  with  an 
English  translation,  and  correctly  spelled. 

"  SEC.  5.  The  studies  of  the  Sophomore  year  shall 
be  Homer's  Iliad,  Horace,  Vulgar  and  Decimal  Frac- 
tions, with  the  extraction  of  Roots,  Geography,  Watts' 
Logic,  Blairs'  Lectures,  Algebra,  the  French  Language 
and  Roman  Antiquities. 

"  SEC.  6,  The  studies  of  the  Junior  year,  shall  be 
Elements  of  Criticism,  Geometry  Theoretical  and 
Practical,  Astronomy,  Natural  and  Moral  Philosophy, 
French,  Longinus  de  Sublimitate,  and  Cicero  de 
Oratore. 

"  SEC.  7.  The  studies  of  the  Senior  year  shall  be 
Millots'  Elements  of  History,  Demosthenes'  Select 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  31 

Orations,  and  such  parts  of  Locke's  Essay  as  shall  be 
prescribed  by  the  Faculty.  The  Seniors,  also,  shall 
review  such  parts  of  the  studies  of  the  preceding  year, 
and  perform  such  exercises  in  the  higher  branches  of 
the  Mathematics  as  the  Faculty  may  direct. 

"  SEC.  8.  From  the  time  of  their  admission  into  Col- 
lege, the  students  shall  be  exercised  in  Composition 
and  public  speaking,  for  which  purpose  such  a  num- 
ber as  the  Faculty  shall  direct  shall  daily,  in  rotation, 
deliver  orations  in  the  College  Hall.  There  shall  also 
be  public  exhibitions,  and  competition  in  speaking  and 
other  exercises,  held  at  such  times  and  under  such 
regulations  as  the  Faculty  shall  require ;  and  every 
member  of  the  Senior  Class  shall,  at  least  once  each 
month,  deliver  an  oration  of  his  own  composition, 
after  submitting  it  to  be  perused  and  corrected  by  the 
President." 


CHAPTER  II. 

The  period  fixed  upon  for  opening  the  College,  the 
10th  January  1805,  was  fast  approaching,  and  the 
Trustees  were  most  busily  engaged  in  completing  the 
organization.  Arrangements  were  made  to  furnish 
the  students  with  board,  and  Timothy  Rives  was 
appointed  steward  of  the  College.  A  dwelling  was 
rented  for  the  President,  and  the  vessel,  though  feebly 
manned,  was  now  to  be  launched  on  the  broad  ocean. 
Messrs.  McLean  and  Wilson  had  declined  their 
appointments,  and  the  master  of  the  ship  had  on. 
board  but  one  other  to  accompany  him  on  his  perilous 
voyage.  This  was  Professor  Hanford.  Thus  opened 
the  South  Carolina  College,  with  a  Faculty  of  two,  on 
the  10th  of  January,  1805.  What  a  mighty  work 
was  before  the  great  man  who  was  placed  at  its  head ! 
He  felt  the  dignity  of  his  mission,  and  in  imagination 
the  vision  of  future  glory  and  renown  passed  before 
him.  On  that  day  this  Faculty  of  two  held  its  first 
meeting.  Who  can  tell  of  their  conferences,  who  can 
describe  the  emotion  which  stirred  their  bosoms  ?  The 
first  step  in  a  great  movement  was  now  to  be  taken ; 
a  great  idea  was  now  to  be  given  a  living,  practical 
realization  ;  a  noble  scheme  excogitated  by  good  and 
patriotic  men,  in  the 'midst  of  many  failures,  was  by 
them  to  be  put  in  operation ;  a  scheme  which  proposed 
to  give  knowledge  to  all,  and  to  diffuse  the  blessings 
of  education  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of 


34  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLCEGE. 

the  land.  What  a  work,  what  a  terrible  though 
ennobling  responsibility!  Fortunate,  indeed,  was  it 
for  the  College  that  that  responsibility  was  devolved 
upon  Maxcy — a  man  rarely  equalled  in  qualifications 
for  such  a  work,  and  I  believe  never  surpassed. 
Who  does  not  wish  that  the  first  youth  admitted  into 
the  College  should  have  genius,  and  the  richest 
endowments — that  the  future  should  reveal  him  as  a 
man  of  mark  in  his  generation — that  he  should  illus- 
trate pre-eminently  the  wisdom  and  policy  which  led 
to  its  foundation — that  he  should  stand  like  a  tower  of 
strength  upon  its  immoveable  basis,  that  the  men  of 
coming  generations  might  gaze  at  its  sublime  and  ma- 
jestic proportions ! 

Most  gratifying  is  it  to  me  to  record  that  the  first 
person  admitted  into  the  College  is  one  of  the  most 
distinguished  of  its  alumni;  that  to  the  most  attrac- 
tive qualities  of  the  man  he  added  the  highest  intellec- 
tual endowments ;  that  his  genius  and  learning  have 
adorned  the  bench  of  Carolina,  and  that  he  is  justly 
regarded  as  the  Eldon  of  our  State.  I  mean  William 
Harper,  the  late  eminent  Chancellor.  The  records  of  the 
Faculty  inform  us  that  he  was  the  first  person  admitted 
into  the  College,  and  that  his  brother  Wesley  was  the 
second.  On  the  same  day  were  admitted  Charles  W. 
DeWitt,  Thomas  W.  Kobertson,  John  N.  Davis,  James 
Goodwin,  John  T.  Goodwin,  John  Mayrant  and  Ben- 
jamin Waring.  By  the  llth  of  July,  twenty-nine 
young  gentlemen  were  received  in  the  College,  and  of 
this-  number  I  give  the  names  of  George  W.  Glenn 
and  Josiah  J.  Evans,*  who  still  survive.  The  Faculty 

*  Since  the  above  was  written  this  worthy  man  died  at  Washington. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  35 

resolved  to  have  an  examination  of  the  classes  011  that 
day,  and  at  that  time  the  first  examination  was  held. 
In  the  mean  time  the  Board  of  Trustees  had  called 
into  its  service  two  additional  Professors,  having 
elected  Clement  Early  and  Elisha  Hammond  on  the 
25th  of  April.  The  first  rising  examination  was  held 
on  the  25th  November,  and  the  several  classes  were 
advanced  to  the  next  higher  grade.  At  the  meeting 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees  on  the  4th  December,  1805, 
Governor  Paul  Hamilton,  the  President,  called  atten- 
tion to  a  fact  which  is  perhaps  not  unworthy  of  notice. 
He  stated  in  substance  that  he  had  examined  the 
original  Act  establishing  the  College,  and  that  the 
Judges  of  the  Court  of  Sessions  and  Common  Pleas, 
who  had  been  acting  as  Trustees,  were  not  appointed 
such  by  said  Act,  and  that  in  consequence  of  this  dis- 
covery the  Judges  had  withdrawn  from  the  Board. 
The  Board  came  to  the  conclusion  that  its  proceedings 
had  not  been  legal,  and  the  Governor  was  requested 
to  communicate  to  the  Legislature  the  embarrassments 
which  had  sprung  from  the  mistake,  and  to  request 
its  interposition  in  legalizing  its  transactions.  An  Act 
to  that  effect  was  accordingly  passed,  and  authority 
was  also  given  to  the  College  to  confer  degrees.  On 
the  20th  December,  Professor  Early  was  disconnected 
with  the  College.  I  can  say  very  little  of  him.  He 
was  associated  with  it  but  a  short  time,  incurred  the 
censure  of  the  Board,  and  I  believe  returned  to  his 
native  State  after  his*  connection  was  dissolved.  He 
was  born  in  Georgia,  and  was  of  the  distinguished 
family  of  that  name,  being  a  brother  of  Governor 
Early,  w^hose  reputation  is  dear  to  the  people  of  that 


36  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

State.  The  Hon.  J.  J.  Evans,  who  was  a  student  in 
the  College  when  Mr.  Early  held  his  Professorship, 
writes  to  me,  that  he  thinks  he  was  a  teacher  in  a 
Preparatory  School  before  his  election  to  a  Professor- 
ship ;  that  he  was  considered  a  good  .scholar ;  that  his 
character  was  excellent,  though  he  was  charged  with 
some  defects  of  temper.  In  the  course  of  December 
there  was  a  public  exhibition  of  Declamations  and 
Dialogues  by  the  Junior,  Sophomore  and  Freshman 
Classes.  Thus  ended  the  first  year  of  the  College,  and 
the  9th  January,  1806,  presented  a  roll  of  forty-six  stu- 
dents. As  far  as  appears  from  the  record,  the  only  act  of 
discipline  during  that  year,  was  the  admonition  of  a 
few  members  of  the  Freshman  Class  for  deficiency  at 
the  examination  in  July.  There  is  every  reason  to 
believe  that  it  had  good  success,  and  the  friends  of  the 
College  took  fresh  courage.  Who  can  tell  the  labors 
of  the  man  who  presided  over  its  fortunes ;  who  can 
estimate  the  value  of  his  services  in  that  brief,  but 
most  important  period ! 

The  second  year  opened  then  under  favorable 
auspices.  At  the  April  meeting  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees,  it  was  resolved  that  the  President  of  the 
College  be  requested  to  perform  Divine  Service  in  the 
Chapel  on  every  Sunday,  and  that  he  be  authorized 
to  invite  occasion  ally  other  respectable  clergymen  of  any 
denomination  to  officiate  in  his  stead.  At  this  meet- 
ing leave  was  granted  to  Professor  Hanford  to  resign 
his  office  at  the  next  annual  meeting.  Thus  was  the 
College  soon  to  be  deprived  of  his  valuable  services. 
By  the  kindness  of  a  distinguished  graduate,  who  was 
a  member  of  the  College  throughout  Professor  Han- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  37 

ford's  connection  with  it,  I  have  it  in  my  power  to 
give  the  following  account  of  him : — He  was  a  native 
of  Connecticut,  and  a  graduate  of  Yale  College.  He 
studied  law  with  Roger  M.  Sherman,  and  came  to  Fay- 
etteville,  North  Carolina.  There  he  became  acquainted 
with  William  DeWitt,  a  gentleman  of  Society  Hill, 
South  Carolina,  who  employed  him  as  a  private 
tutor  for  his  son  Charles  M.  Dewitt,  of  whom  honor- 
able mention  is  made  by  Mr.  Petigru  in  his  semi- 
centennial address  delivered  in  the  College  Hall  in 
December,  1855.  In  the  course  of  the  }^ear  he  married 
a  daughter  of  Mr.  DeWitt.  In  1804,  he  conducted  an 
Academy  of  distinction  called  the  St.  David's  Academy, 
where  most  of  the  persons  in  that  part  of  the  State 
received  their  classical  education.  It  was  whilst  he 
was  thus  employed  that  he  was  elected  Professor. 
Some  of  the  distinguished  men  of  our  State  received 
their  preparatory  education  for  the  College  in  that 
Academy,  and  among  these  may  be  mentioned  Judge 
Evans.  After  he  resigned  his  Professorship  he  re- 
turned to  Society  Hill,  and  commenced  the  practice 
of  the  law.  He  died  in  August  or  September,  1817.  Mr. 
Hanford  was  a  gentleman  of  good  personal  appearance, 
and  somewhat  above  the  common  size.  His  attainments 
in  scholarship  were  respectable,  though  not  of  that  high 
order  which  would  now  be  expected.  They  were  the 
attainments  of  a  well-educated  man  who  did  not 
pursue  literature  as  a  means  of  advancement  in  life ; 
and  it  is  believed  that  he  resorted  to  teaching  as  a  tem- 
porary employment,  until  he  could  establish  himself 
advantageously  in  his  chosen  profession.  During  his 
connection  with  the  College  he  was  much  respected  by* 


38  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

the  students,  and  he  rendered  truly  valuable  service 
to  the  institution  at  this  early,  but  trying  period  of  its 
existence.  As  a  lawyer,  his  attainments  were  good. 
His  mind  was  well-stored  with  the  elementary  prin- 
ciples of  his  profession.  His  arguments  in  Court  were 
sound,  but  his  manner  of  speaking  was  slow  and 
v  hesitating.  At  the  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees 
on  28th  November,  1806,  leave  was  granted  to  Pro- 
fessor Hammond  to  resign  his  office  as  Professor  on 
the  last  day  of  January,  1807. 

Elisha  Hammond  was  born  in  New  Bedford,  Massa- 
chusetts, October  10th,  1774.  Both  his  father  and 
mother  had  brothers  in  the  battle  of  Bunker's  Hill. 
They  were  at  the  time  prisoners  in  Boston.  It  so 
happened,  that  at  the  opening  of  the  battle  the  mother 
had  her  infant  child  in  her  arms,  and  at  the  first  sound 
of  the  cannon  she  dropped  him.  She  was  a  woman 
of  "Tesprit,"  and  wrote  rhymes.  Some  College  beau 
being  in  her  neighborhood,  and  putting  on  airs,  she 
wrote  some  lines  on  the  occasion,  and  among  them 
were  these  two  that  are  not  unworthy  of  Swift : 

"  A  beau  in  the  country  worth  any  in  College, 
For  he  that  hath  wit,  need  not  go  there  for  knowledge." 

Professor  Hammond  graduated  at  Dartmouth  College 
in  1802.  He  came  to  South  Carolina  in  1803-4,  and 
was  immediately  engaged  as  Principal  of  Mount 
Bethel  Academy  in  Newberry,  which  was  established 
by  the  Methodists.  Judge  Evans  informed  me  that 
his  reputation  as  a  teacher  was  very  high.  Judge 
O'Neall,  in  his  "  Annals  of  Newberry,"  speaks  of  "that 
fine  institution  of  learning,  the  Mount  Bethel  Aca- 
xlemy.  Elisha  Hammond,  the  father  of  Governor 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  39 

Hammond,  and  Josiah  P.  Smith,  were  its  principal 
teachers.  It  gave  to  the  country  such  men  as  Judge 
Crenshaw,  Walter  Crenshaw,  Chanceller  Harper,  John 
Caldwell,  Dr.  George  Glenn,  Governor  E.  J.  Manning, 
and  others.  The  Mount  Bethel  Academy  furnished 
the  first  students  and  graduates  of  the  South  Carolina 
College."  It  is  not  surprising  that  the  Trustees  of  the 
College  were  anxious  to  secure  the  services  of  the 
distinguished  principal ;  and  he  was  accordingly 
elected  Professor  of  Languages,  April  25th,  1805. 
NovembeV  28th,  1806,  leave  was  granted  him  to 
resign  his  Professorship  on  the  last  day  of  January, 
1807.  He  returned  to  Ne wherry,  and  again  took 
charge  of  Mount  Bethel  Academy,  in  1809-10,  and 
remained  there  until  the  summer  of  1815,  when  he 
removed  to  Columbia.  Pie  died  at  Macon,  Ga.,  July 
27th,  1829.  I  am  not  prepared  to  speak  of  him 
particularly  as  a  Professor,  or  to  estimate  the  value  of 
those  services  which  he  rendered  to  the  College.  From 
what  has  been  said  the  reader  will  not  doubt  his 
literary  qualifications.  Judge  Evans  was  a  student 
at  the  time,  and  writes  that  "  his  personal  appearance 
and  manners  were  very  captivating,  and  that  his 
popularity  for  a  period  of  his  connection  with  the 
College  was  scarcely  inferior  to  that  of  Dr.  Maxcy." 

At  the  same  meeting  the  Rev.  Joseph  Caldwell  was 
elected  Professor  of  Mathematics  and  Natural  Phi- 
losophy, and  Thomas  Park  elected  Professor  of  Lan- 
guages. On  the  1st  of  December  Paul  H.  Perault 
was  elected  Professor,  and  at  the  same  meeting  the 
Board  resolved,  that  it  was  expedient  to  elect  a 
Professor  of  the  French  language,  whose  whole  time 


40  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

should  be  devoted  to  the  subject ;  and  the  President 
was  requested  to  ask  the  Legislature  to  appropriate 
an  adequate  sum  for  the  salary  of  such  Professor. 
To  most  of  my  readers  I  know  it  will  not  be  uninter- 
esting to  record,  that  the  Board  was  not  unmindful  of 
the  importance  of  the  Chapel  services;  that  it  did 
not  look  upon  any  scheme  of  education  as  complete 
which  neglected  the  great  concern  of  religion.  One 
hundred  Psalm  Books  were  now  ordered  for  the  use 
of  the  students  when  convened  for  the  purpose  of 
Divine  service,  or  prayers;  and  an  order  was  issued  to 
have  the  pulpit  furnished  with  suitable  curtains  and  a 
chair.  The  Legislature,  at  its  session  in  December, 
made  an  appropriation  of  $8,000  for  the  erection  of 
a  house  for  the  President,  provision  for  a  teacher  of 
French,  conferred  upon  the  Trustees  the  power  of 
appointing  tutors  at  a  salary  of  $600  per  annum, 
and  made  an  appropriation  of  $1,200  for  that  purpose. 
On  the  25th  of  February,  1807,  Edward  Hooker  was 
elected  tutor;  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Caldwell  having 
declined  the  appointment  to  the  Professorship  of 
Mathematics  and  Natural  Philosophy,  Professor  Pe- 
rault  was  elected  to  that  chair  on  the  20th  of  April. 
On  the  23d  of  the  month,  Monsieur  Herbemont  was 
elected  French  tutor.  At  the  same  meeting  it  was  re- 
solved that  the  motto  to  the  seal  of  the  South  Carolina 
College  be,  "Collegii  Sigillum  Carolinse  Australis," 
and  the  Governor,  and  Judges  Bay  and  Trezevant, 
were  appointed  a  committee  to  procure  said  seal. 

The  meeting  of  the  Board  on  the  28th  November, 
1807,  is  worthy  of  notice,  as  arrangements  were  then 
made  for  the  first  Commencement.  This  imposing 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  41 

ceremony  had  not.  yet  taken  place,  though  the  Degree 
of  Bachelor  of  Arts  had  been  voted  to  Anderson  Cren- 
shaw  on  the  1st  December  1806,  who  is  therefore 
entitled  to  the  distinction  of  being  the  first  graduate. 
Though  Crenshaw  completed  his  Collegiate  course  at 
this  time,  he  deferred  the  formality  of  taking  his 
degree,  and  received  it  with  the  class  of  1807.  Upon 
the  recommendation  of  the  Faculty,  it  was  resolved 
at  this  meeting  that  the  Degree  of  A.  B.  be  conferred 
on  Walter  Crenshaw,  John  C  aid  well,  George  W.  Glenn 
and  John  W.  Harper,  and  the  President  of  the  College 
was  authorized  to  confer  the  degree  upon  the  several 
persons  in  the  presence  of  the  Trustees  at  the  public  Com- 
mencement. At  the  same  time  the  particular  form  and 
style  of  the  diploma  was  adopted,  which  is  as  follows  : 

"Omnibus  has  literas  perlecturis  salutem  in  Domino 
sempiternam.  Yobis  notum  sit,  Quod  Curatores  Col- 
legii  Carolinae  Australis,  in  soleiinibus  suis  academicis 
A.  B.  gradus  primi  candidate  et  examine  prsevio 
approbate,  titulum,  gradumque  Artium  liberalium 
Baccalaurei  decreverunt ;  eique  omnia  jura,  privilegia 
et  honores  iis  ad  hunc  gradum  ubique  gentium  evectis 
pertinentia,  fruenda  dederunt.  In  cujus  rei  testimo- 
nium,  nos  hisce  literis  Collegii  sigillo  munitis,  nomina 

subscripsimus.  Datum  ex  aedibus  academicis,  die 

annoque  Domini 

Curatores. 

Prceses. 

Professores" 

It  was  also  resolved  that  the  form  be  engraved,  and 
that  five  hundred  copies  be  struck  off  on  parchment ; 


42  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

and  Judges  Grimke  and  Bay,  and  Mr.  Deas,  were 
appointed  a  committee  to  carry  the  resolutions  into 
execution. 

The  President  of  the  College  was  requested  to  prepare 
a  form  of  Diploma  for  the  higher  Degrees.  The 
Legislature  was  invited  to  attend  the  Commencement 
on  the  1st  Monday  of  December.  I  have  now  reached 
a  most  important  period  in  the  history  of  the  College ; 
the  period  of  its  first  Commencement.  But  let  us  go 
within  the  walls.  Let  us  see  what  the  Faculty  and 
Students  have  been  doing  in  the  intervening  period. 
The  number  had  increased,  and  was  rapidly  increas- 
ing, and  with  it  began  the  usual  irregularities.  It 
was  the  process  of  development.  And  was  there  ever 
a  College  without  them  !  I  have  to  notice  during  this 
period  one  instance  of  indecorous  conduct  during  the 
devotional  exercises  of  the  Chapel,  an  affair  of  honor, 
and  certain  "enormities  said  to  have  been  committed 
by  several  of  the  collegians,  in  conjunction  with  others, 
in  various  parts  of  the  town."  The  course  of  instruc- 
tion proceeded  regularly,  the  examinations  of  the 
classes  were  had  as  usual,  and  in  May,  1807,  a  public 
Exhibition  took  place.  As  this  ancient  form  has  been 
superseded,  and  nothing  like  it  is  found  at  present 
amongst  us,  it  may  be  of  some  interest  to  give  it.  A 
certain  number  of  the  Sophomore  and  Junior  Classes 
had  exercises  assigned  them.  From  the  former  were 
selected  "  declaimers,  with  the  liberty  of  exhibiting  a 
dialogue,  if  any  of  them  were  so  disposed,"  and  from  the 
latter  were  appointed  "  disputants"  and  "  orators."  But 
what  is  it  that  detains  the  whole  College  after  evening 
prayers  on  June  1st  ?  The  gifted  Maxcy  is  making  a 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  43 

stirring  appeal  to  the  students ;  his  voice  comes  to  the 
ear  like  the  sound  of  distant  melody ;  its  sweet  tones, 
becoming  louder  and  yet  louder  still,  but  speak  the 
earnestness  of  his  spirit  and  the  deep  interest  of  the 
occasion.  Ah,  what  is  all  this  ?  What  dire  calamity 
is  about  to  overwhelm  the  infant  institution,  and  to 
engulph  the  cherished  hopes  of  its  friends  ?  Let  us 
draw  nearer.  The  College  is  still  safe  ;  no  great  out- 
rage  is  the  theme  of  his  discourse ;  no  spirit  of 
insubordination  has  been  exhibited ;  the  Faculty  have 
only  required  him  to  address  the  students  upon  the 
subject  of  their  inattention  to  neatness  in  dress,  and 
their  indecorum  at  meal  times.  If  it  be  true  that  new 
offences  have  come  with  the  progress  of  the  age,  it  is 
alike  true  that  some  of  the  old  forms  have  disap- 
peared, and  that  for  the  last  thirty  years  the  College 
has  not  been  arraigned  for  its  ungenteel  dress.  But  I 
turn  again  to  the  great  event  of  the  year,  and  to  one 
of  the  greatest  events  in  the  history  of  the  College ; 
I  mean  the  first  Commencement.  From  its  prominence 
it  is  entitled  to  special  notice. 

1.  The  Valedictory  Oration  was  assigned  to  Walter 
Crenshaw. 

2.  The  Salutatory  Oration  to  Caldwell. 

3.  The  two  Intermediate  Orations  to  Glenn  and 
J.  W.  Harper. 

Besides  these  exercises,  a  French  Declamation  was 
assigned  to  Glenn,  and  a  Disputation  to  Harper,  Cald- 
well and  Crenshaw.  Permission  was  likewise  given 
to  all  of  them  to  exhibit  a  dialogue.  But  the  glory  of 
the  occasion  was  to  be  augmented  by  the  Junior 
Class  taking  part  in  it,  and  the  number  being  too 


44  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

large  for  all  to  participate,  the  following  singular  mode 
for  obtaining  the  number  fixed  upon  (12)  was  adopted 
by  the  Faculty : — "  Each  Junior  shall,  before  eight 
o'clock  this  evening,  give  to  one  of  the  officers  a  nomi- 
nation of  twelve  of  the  most  respectable  scholars  in 
his  class,  with  his  own  name  endorsed  on  the  list. 
After  counting  the  votes  and  determining  the  twelve 
highest,  the  faculty  will  assign  to  these  the  several 
parts,  reserving  to  themselves  the  right  of  adding 
two  or  three  others  to  the  twelve  if  they  think  it 
necessary."  The  votes  being  counted  and  twelve 
declared  elected,  to  some  were  assigned  "  Orations,"  to 
some  a  "  Dispute,"  and  to  others  "  A  Conference 
on  the  comparative  advantages  of  Moral  Philosophy, 
Logic  and  Criticism."  Thus  were  the  arrangements 
for  the  first  Commencement  completed.  It  is  wor- 
thy of  remark  that  the  Trustees,  at  the  last  meet- 
ing before  the  day  appointed,  used  pretty  freely  the 
authority  given  them  to  confer  degrees ;  and  the 
programme  embraced  not  only  A.  B.'s,  but  LL.  D.'s 
and  D.  D.'s  ;  the  degree  of  LL.  D.  being  granted  to 
John  Drayton,  and  that  of  D.  D.  to  William  Percy, 
Richard  Furmaii,  Joseph  Alexander  and  Moses 
Waddle.  But  I  have  reached  that  great  day,  the  &M 
Monday  of  December  1807.  And  what  a  day  of 
rejoicing  !  The  College  has  triumphed  !  The  Gov-^ 
ernor,  the  Judges,  the  Members  of  the  Legislature, 
the  young  and  the  old,  all  ranks  and  conditions,  have 
assembled  to  celebrate  the  victory.  There  is  the 
sound  of  music.  The  vast  crowd  move  towards  the  Col- 
lege, and  the  drum  and  the  horn,  with  the  shouts  of  the 
multitude,  send  forth  one  mighty  paean  of  gratulation. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  45 

See  the  face  of  Maxcy  as  he  sits  upon  the  stage,  radi- 
ant with  genius  and  with  joy  ;  look  at  the  good  and 
patriotic  men  who  have  toiled  for  years  ^without 
reward,  and  whose  hopes  have  this  day  received  full 
fruition.  And  the  young  men,  too,  who  are  to  take 
part  in  this  imposing  ceremony,  who  have  the  high 
honor  of  being  the  first  alumni  of  a  College  whose 
future  is  to  be  so  bright  and  glorious ;  what  shall  I 
say  of  them  ?  And  the  twelve  Juniors  who  have 
been  permitted  to  appear  on  the  occasion,  who  will 
tell  the  emotions  by  which  their  youthful  bosoms  are 
agitated?  In  that  group  were  Glenn  and  Evans, 
the  only  two  survivors,  and  at  this  day  the  scene 
opens  before  them  with  all  the  freshness  of  a  present- 
reality. 

It  is  well  to  remark  that,  at  this  period,  it  was  the 
custom  to  announce  publicly  the  names  of  a  "  few  " 
of  the  most  distinguished  of  each  class.  Why  this 
good  custom  was  abandoned — a  custom  which  has 
every  thing  to  recommend  it — I  cannot  tell.  In  a 
modified  form  it  has  been  revived  in  modern  times. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  after  the 
College  Commencement,  was  in  April,  1808.  At  that 
meeting,  and  others  which  were  holden  in  the  course 
of  the  year,  the  money  granted  by  the  Legislature  was 
ordered  to  be  appropriated  for  the  completion  of  the 
College  Buildings,  measures  were  taken  to  build  a  wall 
around  the  College,  and  the  laws  were  amended  in 
various  particulars.  On  the  22d  November,  leave  was 
granted  to  Mr.  Hooker  to  resign  his  office.  I  can  say 
but  little  of  him,  as  my  information  is  limited.  He 
was  a  native  of  Connecticut,  and  a  brother  of  John 
8 


46  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE, 

Hooker,  an  eminent  lawyer,  who  lived  and  died  in 
Columbia.  Whilst  Edward  Hooker  was  residing  in 
Columbia,  he  was  elected  a  Tutor  in  Yale  College, 
accepted  the  appointment,  and  returned  to  his  native 
State.  That  he  was  an  useful  officer  in  our  College 
there  can  be  no  doubt.  This  is  the  testimony  of 
his'  pupils,  and  upon  his  dissolving  his  connection, 
the  Board  of  Trustees  expressed  its  high  respect  for 
his  talents  and  abilities,  and  returned  thanks  for  his 
attention  to  the  duties  of  his  office.  Mr.  Herbemont 
resigned  his  office  of  Teacher  of  the  French  Language, 
on  the  2d  of  December,  1808.  James  K.  Gregg  was 
elected  Tutor,  7th  December,  in  place  of  Mr.  Hooker. 
On  looking  at  the  proceedings  of  the  Faculty  for  the 
year  1808,  the  proofs  of  industry  and  energy  are 
abundant.  The  success  of  the  past^  years,  and  the 
eclat  of  the  Commencement,  had  served  to  attract 
public  attention  in  still  larger  measure  to  it,  and 
students  poured  into  it  from  all  quarters.  But  viola- 
tions of  law  multiplied,  and  the  discipline  of  the 
College  had  to  be  enforced  with  rigor.  Students 
were  "degraded"  from  their  classes,  and  the  degrada- 
tion announced  by  the  President  after  evening  prayers ; 
inquisitions  were  held  in  relation  to  outrages  com- 
mitted at  the  Steward's  Hall,  and  other  places,  on 
Saturday  and  Sunday  nights ;  attention  was  directed 
to  irregularities  by  a  number  of  students,  originated 
by  drinking  at  taverns  ;  students  were  arraigned  for 
assaults  on  the  windows  of  the  steward's  house,  for 
destruction  of  some  of  the  furniture  about  the  College 
wall,  for  treating  an  officer  of  the  College  with  open 
and  designed  disrespect,  for  an  affair  of  honor  on  Sab- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  47 

bath  morning,  in  which  shots  were  exchanged,  and  for 
various  minor  offences.  This  was  a  period  of  severe 
trial,  but  the  faculty  met  it  like  men.  The  'great  man 
at  the  head  quailed  not,  and  the  storm  passed  over 
without  doing  material  injury.  I  would  say  nothing 
which  could  cast  discredit  upon  the  College  in  the 
early  periods  of  its  existence  ;  but  the  youth  of  that 
day  were  not  sinless. 

The  disorders  did  not  begin  in  recent  times.  A  half 
dozen  young  men  are  competent  to  commit  all  the 
offences  enumerated  above,  and  as  many  more.  My 
experience  in  College  life  teaches  me  that  the  really 
bad  youths  constitute  a  very  small  number.  There  is 
enough  in  the  retrospect  of  the  period  to  which  I  am 
now  referring,  to  make  the  friends  of  the  College 
rejoice.  As  I  have  already  said,  the  administration 
was  distinguished  for  its  vigor ;  and  I  have  now^  to 
add,  that  never,  perhaps,  at  any  other  time,  has  its 
roll  of  sudents  exhibited  more  talent  and  character. 
In  that  number  are  to  be  found  a  Murphy,  a  Gregg, 
a  Harper,  an  Evans,  a  Grayson,  a  Petigru,  a  Butler, 
a  Bowie,  a  Campbell,  and  others.  At  the  Commence- 
ment the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Arts  was  conferred 
on  thirty  young  gentlemen ;  Master  of  Arts  on 
Messrs.  Hooker  and  Park  ;  Doctor  of  Divinity  on  Kev. 
Daniel  McCalla;  and  Doctor  of  Laws  on  Benjamin 
Allen,  of  New  York.  The  year  1809  gives  no  events 
of  special  interest  in  the  proceedings  of  the  Faculty. 
There  were  few  violations  of  law,  and  they  were  not 
of  a  character  to  deserve  special  notice.  At  a  meeting 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  April  25th,  1809,  Rev.  Mr. 
Brown  was  elected  Professor  of  Logic  and  Moral 


48  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Philosophy.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  Board 
kept  in  view  the  religious  interests  of  the  College,  and 
that  at  this  meeting  fifty  dollars  were  appropriated  for 
the  purchase  of  Psalm  Books  for  the  use  of  the  Chapel. 
The  Professors  had  not  proper  accommodations  within 
the  walls,  and  the  Board  determined  to  memorialize 
the  Legislature,  requesting  that  a  certain  sum  of 
money  be  appropriated  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  a 
building  for  their  use. 

It  has  already  been  stated  that  at  the  meeting  of 
the  Trustees,  November  28th,  1807,  a  form  of  Diploma 
was  adopted,  and  the  President  of  the  College  requested 
to  prepare  a  form  for  the  higher  degrees.  From  some 
unknown  cause  no  diploma  had  yet  been  given  to  a 
graduate,  and  the  President  had  not  yet  reported  a 
form  for  the  higher  degrees.  April  25th,  1809,  it  was 
resolved  by  the  Board  that  the  Chairman  of  the 
Standing  Committee  be  authorized  to  pay  Judge 
Grimke  two  hundred  dollars  for  the  purpose  of 
purchasing  diplomas,  a  screw-press  and  seal,  and 
parchment  for  honorary  diplomas. 

In  the  Journal  of  the  Executive  Department  is  an 
interesting  letter  from  Governor  Drayton  to  Dr. 
Maxcy,  and  as  it  sheds  some  light  upon  the  history  of 
the  College  at  this  period,  I  take  the  liberty  of  making 
some  extracts  from  it.  It  is.  dated  Charleston,  June 
8th,  1809.  An  article  in  reference  to  the  College  had 
appeared  in  the  "  Times"  newspaper  of  the  day  before, 
and  the  Governor  desires  to  consult  President  Maxcy 
as  to  the  means  most  proper  for  promoting  its  further 
interest.  He  thinks  with  the  writer,  that  the  citizens 
of  the  low  country  are  too  much  in  the  habit  of  send- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  49 

ing  their  sons  elsewhere  for  education.  "  I  know,"  says 
he,  "  that  some  have  serious  objections  to  sending  their 
sons  to  Columbia,  on  account  of  the  general  practice 
among  the  students  of  smoking  and  chewing  tobacco ; 
a  custom  now  exploded  with  us  in  genteel  company, 
except  where  there  may  be  one  or  two  old  confirmed 
smokers.  They  fear,  also,  that  this  smoking  and  chew- 
ing will  lead  to  other  vices.  While  objections  thus 
remain,  unless  inducements  or  particular  encourage- 
ments be  offered,  our  citizens  of  the  lower  country 
will  not  be  forward  in  sending  their  sons  to  the  South 
Carolina  College."  He  makes  certain  suggestions,  to 
which  I  do  not  think  it  necessary  to  refer.  We  learn 
from  this  letter  that,  as  yet,  no  diplomas  had  been 
given.  "  Further  delay,  he  conceives,  would  be  dis- 
graceful to  the  College.  So  much  for  the  regular 
diplomas ;  now  for  the  honorary  ones.  I  think  you 
mentioned  to  me  they  might  be  written  on  parchment 
in  an  handsome  writing,  to  be  adapted  to  each  person 
on  whom  the  degree  is  conferred.  This  no  doubt  will 
be  the  best  mode.  But,  if  difficulties  are  to  arise  in 
executing  this,  whether  for  want  of  appropriations  for 
purchasing  the  parchment,  or  for  the  parchment  itself, 
I  think  it  would  be  better,  and  in  the  end  answer 
perhaps  as  well,  to  have  a  certain  honorary  form  printed 
on  royal  paper,  with  a  large  blank  for  inserting  any- 
thing particularly  connected  with  the  character  hon- 
ored." He  urges  the  matter  with  great  earnestness, 
and  declares  that  he  will  be  deeply  mortified  if  the 
whole  of  the  diplomas  already  conferred  are  not  ready 
for  delivery  at  the  next  Commencement  in  December, 
as  well  as  those  then  to  be  delivered.  He  is  informed 


50  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

that  the  students  who  have  graduated  have,  as  yet, 
no  evidence  of  the  same.  I  cannot  permit  the  occa- 
sion to  pass  without  bearing  my  unqualified  testimony 
to  the  untiring  zeal  of  Governor  Drayton  in  the  cause 
of  general  education,  and  the  very  special  interest 
which  he  ever  exhibited  for  the  College.  To  none  of 
our  Governors  is  the  Institution  more  indebted,  and 
in  none  of  the  acts  of  his  useful  public  life  were  his 
patriotism  and  enlightened  forecast  so  conspicuously 
manifested. 

At  the  meeting  of  December  13th,  it  was  resolved 
that  the  President  of  the  College  do  report  to  the 
Board  of  Trustees  the  course  of  studies  which  have 
been  pursued  by  the  respective  classes,  and  under 
which  officer  of  the  College  each  class  has  studied,  and 
in  what  manner  the  officers  have  discharged  their 
duties.  The  honorary  degrees  of  the  College  had  been 
freely  conferred,  and  it  was  very  *properly  determined 
that,  in  future,  no  degree  should  -be  'conferred  until 
after  twelve  months'  notice.  The  Legislature,  at  its 
December  session,  made  an  appropriation  of  $8,000 
for  building  a  house  or  houses  for  the  accommodation 
of  the  Professors. 

At  this  meeting  Dr.  Maxcy  reported  the  following  form 
of  diploma  for  the  higher  degrees,  which  was  adopted : 

Cum  gradus  academic!  eum  in  fmein,  primo  a  majori- 
bus  instituti  fuerunt,  ut  qui,  de  Ecclesia,  de  Republica, 
et  de  Re  Literaria,  bene  meruissent,  ii  honoribus  affi- 
cerentur;  proemiisque,  virtute,  ingenio  ac  literarum 
cognitione  dignis  remunerarentur ; 

Omnibus  Noturn  sit,  quod,  Collegii  Australis  Caro- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  51 

linse  Curatores  pubiicis  in  comitiis  suis  academicis, 
viro  gradum  decreverunt ; 

eique  omnia  jura,  privilegia,  et  honores  iis  ad  hunc 
gradum,  ubique  gentium  eveetis,  fruenda  dederunt. 
Cujus  rei,  quo  major  esset  fides,  nos  hisce  literis, 
Collegii  sigillo  munitis,  iiomina  subscripsimus. 

Datum  ex  Aedibus  academicis  Die  Decem- 

bris  aniioque  Domini 

I  have  now  reached  the  year  1810,  and  the  College 
is  in  the  full  tide  of  successful  experiment.  The 
reader  will  indulge  me  for  a  moment,  and  then  I  will 
resume  the  subject  of  its  progress.  It  would  be  an 
act  of  injustice  and  ingratitude  if  I  should  pass  unno- 
ticed, the  labors  of  certain  individuals  who  have  been 
prominent  in  the  work  of  organization,  and  who  are 
therefore  fairly  entitled  to  the  thanks  of  the  country.  I 
have  already  spoken  generally  of  the  zeal  and  activity 
which  characterized  the  Board  of  Trustees ;  but  I  must 
here  record  that  to  patriots  of  the  Revolution,  to  men 
who  resisted  British  oppression,  and  bequeathed  to  us 
the  heritage  of  freedom,  are  we  indebted  for  this  second, 
and,  perhaps,  more  glorious  birthright.  .  They  saw 
plainly,  that  to  preserve  our  rights  we  must  understand 
them;  that  ignorance  was  incompatible  with  liberty;  and 
that  the  only  security  for  its  perpetuation  was  to  be  found 
in  the  education  of  the  people.  Let  me  here  record 
the  names  of  Drayton,  of  DeSaussure,  of  Rutledge,  of 
Pinckney,  of  Johnson,  of  Trezevant,  of  Grimke,  of 
Bay,  of  Stark,  and  last,  though  not  least,  of  Taylor 
and  Hampton.  Of  the  last  two  gentlemen  I  must  add, 
that  up  to  the  period  which  my  narrative  embraces, 


52  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

they  were  ever  present  at  the  meetings  of  the  Board; 
and  being  always  the  leading  members  of  the  Standing 
Committee,  the  greatest  amount  of  labor  was  devolved 
upon  them.  They  now  retired  from  all  participation 
in  the  affairs  of  the  College,  but  others  of  their  family 
succeeded  to  their  places,  and  the  names  of  Taylor 
and  Hampton,  from  1801  to  the  present  period,  have 
been  linked  with  its  fortunes  and  destiny. 

Up  to  the  present  time  the  reports  of  the  President 
of  the  College  had  not  been  spread  upon  the  record, 
and  in  consequence  much  valuable  material  has  been 
lost.  The  Board  of  Trustees,  at  the  April  meeting  in 
1810,  very  properly  resolved,  that  in  future  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Board  shall  enter  on  its  journals  all  letters 
of  information  received  from  the  President  or  Pro- 
fessors of  the  College,  or  letters  upon  subjects  required 
to  be  communicated  by  them.  At  the  meeting  of 
November  30th,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  petition 
the  Legislature  for  the  appropriation  of  $1,600  annu- 
ally for  the  establishment  of  a  Professorship  of  Chem- 
istry. The  year  was  one  of  disorder  in  the  College. 
A  long  catalogue  of  offences  is  exhibited  on  the  record 
of  the  Faculty ;  and  I  have  here  to  mark  the  intro- 
duction of  a  particular  offence  which  at  once  rose  to 
unwonted  popularity,  and  which  continued  to  be  the 
favorite  until  within  the  last  few  years ;  I  mean 
turkey-stealing.  On  the  20th  February,  1810,  the  first 
offenders  in  this  way  were  arraigned  before  the  Faculty, 
and  suspended  for  seven  months.  The  violations  of 
law  were  probably  confined  to  few,  as  the  minutes  of 
the  Faculty  bear  testimony  to  the  proficiency  of  the 
classes.  The  administration  was  one  of  great  vigor. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  53 

The  Faculty  were  vigilant,  and  the  laws  were  enforced 
with  remarkable  fidelity.  But  the  state  of  the  College 
can  be  best  understood  by  referring  to  the  report  of 
President  Maxcy,  bearing  date  November  29th,  1810, 
being  the  first  report  placed  upon  the  record.  This 
report  has  great  interest,  as  it  gives  the  precise  course 
of  studies  pursued  by  the  several  classes  for  six 
months,  informs  us  of  the  state  of  the  College,  and 
contains  many  suggestions.  It  embraces  the  period 
extending  from  April  to  the  date  of  the  report.  With- 
in this  time  the  Senior  class  completed  Stewart's 
Elements,  continued  the  study  of  Ancient  History  from 
the  foundation  of  Rome  to  the  end  of  the  third  Punic 
war,  reviewed  a  part  of  Moral  Philosophy  and  the  Ele- 
ments of  Criticism,  under  the  President  of  the  College. 
Under  Professor  Perault,  they  studied  Conic.  Sec- 
tions, Trigonometry  and  Logarithms,  Mechanics,  As- 
tronomy, Optics,  Pneumatics,  Hydraulics,  and  attended 
lectures  on  Chemistry.  Under  Professor  Brown  they 
reviewed  Moral  Philosophy.  The  Juniors  studied 
under  Professor  Brown,  Logic  and  the  first  three 
books  of  Moral  Philosophy ;  under  Professor  Perault 
the  1st,  2d,  3d,  4th,  6th  and  llth  bookjs  of  Euclid's 
Elements,  the  doctrine  of  Ratios,  Mensuration,  Trigo- 
nometry, Conic  Sections  and  Algebra.  The  Sopho- 
more Class  studied  under  Professor  Park,  Homer, 
Horace,  Geography  and  Sheridan's  Lectures ;  the 
Freshman  the  first  book  of  Xenophon's  Cyropedia. 
The  Sophomore  studied  under  Tutor  Gregg,  Vulgar 
and  Decimal  Fractions,  the  Extraction  of  Roots  and 
Algebra,  as  far  as  Quadratic  Equations.  The  Freshman 
Class  also  studied  under  the  same  gentleman  Cicero's 


54  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Orations,  and  the  whole  of  Arithmetic  and  English 
Grammar.  Cicero  de  Oratore  would  have  been  read 
by  the  Junior  Class,  but  it  could  not  be  obtained. 
The  President  remarks  that  with  the  present  in- 
creased numbers  in  the  College,  the  field  in  which  the 
Mathematical  Professor  has  been  employed  is  too  wide, 
and  that  Mr.  Gregg  has  undertaken  part  of  the  Mathe- 
matics, so  that  the  classes  might  be  sufficiently  advanced 
by  the  Spring  of  the  Senior  year  to  begin  the  study  of 
Chemistry.  He  assures  the  Board  of  the  fidelity  of  the 
Professors  and  Tutor,  and  of  the  great  order,  obedience 
and  diligence  of  the  students.  He  suggests  that  an 
eloquent  and  learned  Professor  of  Chemistry  would  be 
a  most  valuable  acquisition  to  the  College,  and  adds, 
that  a  Professor  of  Law,  who  would  deliver  a 
course  of  lectures  to  the  two  upper  classes,  would  add 
much  to  the  value  and  reputation  of  the  College.  He 
informs  the  Board  that  additional  Tutors  will  be 
needed  the  ensuing  year,  as  the  number  of!  students  is 
now  upwards  of  one  hundred,  and  there  are  more 
than  forty  applications  for  admission.  He  suggests, 
too,  that  there  ought  to  be  a  Tutor  constantly  re- 
siding in  eajh  wing  of  the  building.  He  alludes  to 
the  disorders  of  the  past  year,  and  the  severity  of  the 
punishment  which  the  Faculty,  in  some  instances, 
was  compelled  to  inflict.  The  publication  of  an  Annual 
Catalogue  is  suggested,  and  the  opinion  expressed  that 
it  would  be  of  singular  service  to  the  College  if  a 
small  sum  of  money  could  be  annually  appropriated 
for  procuring  new  and  important  publications,  critical 
reviews,  and  the  literary  journals  of  various  learned 
Societies  in  Europe. 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  report  of  the  President  of  April  23d,  1811, 
represents  the  conduct  of  the  students,  with  few 
exceptions,  as  remarkably  regular  during  the  session, 
and  the  degree  of  application  to  their  studies  as 
unprecedented.  The  most  striking  event  of  the  year 
is  the  removal  of  Prosessor  Perault  for  neglect  of  Col- 
lege duties.  The  accuser  was  Dr.  Maxcy  himself,  and 
to  the  Professor  was  accorded  the  privilege  of  appear- 
ing before  the  Board.  The  resolution  of  removal 
passed  on  the  25th  of  April.  I  can  procure  but  little 
information  of  Professor  Perault.  He  was  a  French- 
man, and  of  his  early  history  I  know  nothing.  He  is 
represented  to  me  as  wanting  in  "  that  dignity  which 
a  Freshman  would  expect  in  a  learned  Professor ;"  and 
as  being  "  well  skilled  in  Mathematical  science." 
After  his  separation  from  the  College,  he  was  at- 
tached to  the  army  as  a  topographical  engineer ;  an 
appointment,  it  is  believed,  obtained  through  the  kind 
offices  of  General  Hampton,  then  a  Major-General  in 
the  army. 

Leave  was  granted  to  Professor  Brown  on  the  1st  of 
May  to  resign  his  office.  John  Brown  was  born  in 
Ireland,  Antrim  county,  June  15, 1763.  He  emigrated 
with  his  father  to  America,  and  settled  in  Chester 
District,  South  Carolina.  His  educational  advantages 
were  very  limited,  having  gone  to  school  only  eighteen 


56  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

months.  For  the  last  half  of  the  period  he  was  a 
schoolmate  of  General  Jackson.  At  the  age  of 
teen,  he  voluntarily  exchanged  the  academy  for  the 
camp,  and  under  General  Suniter,  fought  gallantly  for 
the  liberties  of  his  adopted  country.  Upon  the  close  of 
the  war  he  set  himself  diligently  to  the  task  of  im- 
proving his  mind.  But  a  more  important  service  was 
before  him.  He  was  to  preach  the  gospel  of  our  Saviour, 
and  to  call  upon  a  sinful  world  to  repent  and  embrace 
the  offer  of  salvation.  He  studied  Theology  under  the 
Rev.  Dr.  McCorcle  near  Salisbury.  North  Carolina, 
and  was  licensed  to  -preach,  in  the  year  1788,  by  the 
Presbvterv  of  Concord,  with  which  his  teacher  was 

•  • 

connected.  He  combined  the  professions  of  teaching 
and  preaching  lor  9  few  years,  and  was  then  called  to 
the  pastorship  of  the  Waxhaw  Church,  which  he 
held  lor  ten  years.  Resigning  his  pastorship,  he  again 
took  up  the  business  of  teaching :  and  notwithstanding 
the  disadvantages  of  his  early  training,  achieved  con- 
siderable literary  reputation.  April  25. 1809.  he  was 
elected  Professor  of  Logic  and  Moral  Philosophy  in 
the  South  Carolina  College.  May  1.  1811.  he  re- 
signed his  Professorship.  In  the  course  of  that  year 
he  was  elected  President  of  the  University  of  Georgia. 
After  leaving  the  Presidency  of  that  Institution,  he 
removed  to  Hancock  County,  Georgia,  where  he 
remained  in  charge  of  a  church  for  twelve  years. 
His  last  home  was  at  Fort  Gaines,  where  he  died 
December  11, 1842,  in  the  eightieth  year  of  his  age. 

It  is  thought  proper  to  record  a  few  additional  facts 
in  the  religious  life  of  Ihr.  Brown.  He  was  the  founder 
of  the  Presbvterian  Church  in  Columbia.  It 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  0< 

formed  in  the  College  Chapel,  and  services  were  held 
there  until  a  house  of  worship  was  obtained.  He  was 
an  eminently  good  man.  and  animated  by  a  truly 
apostolic  spirit.  No  higher  praise  can  be  bestowed 
upon  him  than  that  which  is  found  in  the  language  of 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Talmage,  who  knew  him  well:  "He 
was  entitled  to  the  appellation  we  used  when  speak- 
ing of  him — our  Apostle  John."  He  was  distin- 
guished for  his  humility,  his  amiability,  his  gene- 
rosity, and  the  readiness  with  which  he  bestowed  his 
confidence  upon  men. 

Though  his  understanding  was  vigorous,  and  his 
acquirements  extraordinary  for  that  day,  and  his 
command  of  language,  according  to  Dr.  Talmage,  not 
surpassed  by  any  one  whom  he  ever  knew,  yet  I  am 
inclined  to  think,  from  the  testimony  of  distinguished 
graduates  who  received  his  instructions,  that  as  a 
Professor  he  was  defective  in  a  most  important  par- 
ticular. One  of  the  most  gifted  and  honored  of  the 
alumni  of  the  College  writes  to  me.  that  i%  his  teachings 
in  Moral  Philosophy  were  too  much  from  the  lxx)k  to 
excite  interest,  and  that  he  failed  to  arouse  attention  on 
the  part  of  his  pupils.  He  was  a  man  of  great  firm- 

-.  probity,  and  excellence  of  character."  I  would 
not.  however,  say  any  thing  which  could  impair  in 
the  least  the  just  reputation  of  Dr.  Brown.  There  is 
enough  in  his  life,  and  enough  in  his  character,  as 
briefly  and  imperfectly  'portrayed  in  this  memoir.  TO 
shed  a  rich  lustre  upon  the  College.  He  furnishes  a 
bright  leaf  in  its  history;  and  while  remembered  for 
his  exalted  Christian  character,  it  will  ever  be  his 
peculiar  glory  that  he  gave  the  first  impulse  to  a  most 


08  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

important  department.  I  have  already  stated  in 
another  place,  that  the  College  was  founded  by  our 
Revolutionary  fathers,  and  I  cannot  help  feeling  that 
there  is  much  to  excite  a  commendable  pride  in  the 
bosoms  of  its  friends,  in  the  fact,  that  a  gallant  sol- 
dier, the  companion  and  school-mate  of  Jackson,  has  a 
place  in  the  roll  of  her  Faculty. 

At  this  meeting,  May  1st,  Charles  Dewar  Simons 
was  elected  Professor  of  Chemistry  and  Natural  Phi- 
losophy. An  appropriation  of  money  was  also  made,  to 
be  expended  b}~  the  Standing  Committee  for  the 
purchase  of  such  materials  and  articles  as  the  Profes- 
sor may  declare  necessary  for  the  performance  of 
experiments  in  his  department.  Upon  the  retirement 
of  Professor  Perault,  it  became  necessary  to  adopt 
some  measures  for  carrying  on  the  Mathematical 
instruction;  and  the  duties  of  the  department  were 
devolved  temporarily  upon  Tutor  Gregg,  and  Mr. 
Philips  was  elected  Tutor  ad  interim.  The  two 
chairs  of  Moral  Philosophy  and  Mathematics  were  now 
vacant,  and  one  of  the  tutorships  had  been  filled 
temporarily.  Upon  the  Trustees  devolved  the  duty 
of  making  several  important  elections.  The 'College 
had  achieved  good  success ;  it  was  an  object  of  attrac- 
tion, and  men  of  ability  and  learning  were  now 
anxious  to  take  places  in  it.  At  the  meeting  of 
November  27th,  the  testimonials  of  various  candidates 
were  presented.  The  names  of  ten  candidates  for  the 
Mathematical  Chair  are  on  the  record.  At  this  meet- 
ing the  Rev.  Doctor  Montgomery  was  elected  Professor 
of  Moral  Philosophy  and  Logic,  and  on  the  succeeding 
day  Mr.  George  Blackburn  was  elected  Professor  of 


•HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  59 

Mathematics  and  Astronomy.  The  tutorship  of  the 
French  language  having  been  restored,  Mr.  Herbemont 
was  re-elected  to  that  office.  Full  provision  had  not 
yet  been  made  for  the  accommodation  of  the  officers  of 
the  Faculty,  and  it  was  now  wisely  determined  to 
make  application  to  the  Legislature  for  an  appropria- 
tion of  $8,000,  to  be  expended  in  the  erection  of  two 
houses  for  their  use.  The  election  of  a  Chemical 
Professor  created  a  necessity  for  some  changes  in  the 
curriculum  of  studies,  with  the  view  of  securing  more 
time  for  the  sciences.  These  changes  were  suggested 
by  the  President.  A  communication  on  the  subject 
from  Professor  Simons  formed  the  basis  of  a  very  full 
and  elaborate  report  from  a  special  committee.  The 
aid  of  the  Legislature  was  invoked,  and  an  appropria- 
tion of  nearly  $5,000  asked,  for  the  purpose  of  making 
an  addition  to  the  Philosophical  and  Chemical  appa- 
ratus, and  for  preparing  a  suitable  room  •  for  the 
performance  of  chemical  experiments.  In  a  previous 
report  of  Dr.  Maxcy,  it  is  stated  that  the  Senior  Class 
attended  lectures  on  Chemistry  by  Professor  Perault. 
Of  the  precise  character  of  these  lectures,  and  the 
amount  of  instruction  which  they  conveyed,  I  am 
ignorant;  but  if  taught  at  all,  it  was  as  a  mere  appen- 
dage, and  a  very  humble  one  too,  to  the  department  of 
Mathematics,  and  the  era  of  its  introduction  into  the 
College  course  may  in  all  justice  be  fixed  as  contem- 
poraneous with  the  election  of  Professor  Simons.  The 
committee  regret  the  necessity  of  another  appeal  to 
the  Legislature  after  the  very  liberal  support  which 
had  been  so  honorably  extended;  but  they  add,  with 
becoming  eloquence,  that  "  they  presume  that  honorable 


60  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.. 

body  will  not  permit  a  plant,  reared  by  their  own 
hands,  and  nourished  by  their  own  bounty,  to  languish 
and  fade  at  the  moment  of  greatest  prosperity."  Pro- 
fessor Simons'  last  labors  were  performed  in  December. 
The  close  of  the  year  found  the  College  in  good  con- 
dition. The  President,  in  his  report  at  this  period, 
assures  the  Board  of  its  favorable  and  prosperous 
state;  observes  that  it  has  one  hundred  and  twenty 
students,  and  that  their  attention  to  their  studies,  and 
general  proficiency  in  learning,  are  worthy  of  high 
approbation. 

Charles  Dewar  Simons,  a  son  of  Col.  James  Simons? 
a  distinguished  patriot  and  officer  of  the  Revolution, 
was  born  in  Charleston.  I  believe  he  received  his 
Collegiate  education  at  some  of  the  northern  institu- 
tions. Upon  the  establishment  of  the  Chair  of  Chem- 
istry in  the  South  Carolina  College,  he  was  unani- 
mously called  to  it  by  the  Board  of  Trustees.  This 
election  took  place  May  1st,  1811,  and  the  Standing 
Committee  were  instructed  to  request  him  to  enter 
upon  the  duties  of  his  department  as  soon  as  possible. 
I  think  he  took  charge  of  his  IJrofessorship  immedi- 
ately, but  I  know  not  the  precise  period.  Dr.  Maxcy, 
in  his  report  to  the  Board  of  November,  27th,  1811, 
states,  that  "under  Professor  Simons  the  Seniors  have 
studied  Chemistry,  and  attended  his  lectures;  and  that 
the  Juniors  have  made  some  progress  in  Natural  Phi- 
losophy." He  seems  to  have  entered  upon  his  labors 
with  great  enthusiasm.  In  the  course  of  December, 
or  January  succeeding,  he  visited  Charleston  on  some 
business  probably  connected  with  his  department. 
But  he  was  destined  never  to  return,  and  to  be  arrested 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  61 

in  his  bright  career  by  one  of  those  appalling  Provi- 
dences which  shock  a  whole  community.  In  the  pre- 
sent instance  it  produced  the  profoundest  sympathy. 
He  was  a  Professor  but  a  short  time ;  yet  he  was  in 
the  College  long  enough  to  make  the  best  impression. 
A  distinguished  gentleman,  who  was  a  student  at  that 
period,  assures  me  that  he  was  a  remarkable  man,  and 
with  the  view  of  bringing  me  to  a  just  appreciation  of 
him,  added,  that  in  the  character  of  his  genius,  he  was 
precisely  such  a  person  as  the  late  Professor  Ellet — a 
compliment,  I  conceive,  of  highest  worth. 

The  following  account  of  his  death  is  taken  from 
the  "South  Carolina  State  Gazette,"  Columbia,  Tues- 
day, January  28th,  1812  : — "One  of  the  most  painful 
duties  which  devolves  upon  us  as  recorders  of  passing 
events,  is  the  annunciation  of  casualties  which  deprive 
us  of  a  valuable  citizen.  We  feel  this  distress  most 
sensibly,  and  in  a  way  which  language  cannot  express, 
in  relating  the  death  of  Charles  D.  Simons,  Esquire, 
Professor  of  Natural  Philosophy  and  Chemistry  in  the 
South  Carolina  College.  This  event  took  place  on 
Tuesday,  21st  instant,  in  consequence  of  being  exposed 
to  excessive  cold  and  wet.  The  following  narrative, 
we  believe,  conveys  a  correct  statement  of  the  circum- 
stances which  accompanied  this  melancholy  event : 

He  was  returning  from  Charleston,  and  had  reached 
the  swamp  below  Granby,  called  Hawcabook,  the 
causeway  of  which  was  covered  with  water  in  conse- 
quence of  a  high  fresh  in  the  river,  and  which  he  de- 
termined to  pass.  He  proceeded  about  a  hundred  and 
fifty  or  two  hundred  yards  along  the  causeway,  when 
it  is  supposed  his  horse  either  got  into  the  ditch  or 
4 


62  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

stumbled,  so  as  to  unhorse  him.  The  horse  soon  got 
out,  and  Mr.  Simons  reached  a  tree,  where  he  remained 
and  called  for  assistance.  His  servant,  who  had  stopped 
at  a  house  to  warm  himself  a  short  distance  from  the 
fatal  spot,  came  up  soon  after,  and  understanding  the 
distressed  situation  of  his  master,  immediately  rode  in 
to  his  assistance,  but  meeting  with  considerable  diffi- 
culty in  reaching  him  on  horseback,  and  thinking  to 
render  him  more  effectual  aid  on  foot,  came  to  land, 
released  his  horse,  and  with  a  perseverance  worthy  of 
a  better  fate,  returned  to  the  spot  where  he  had  seen 
his  master.  After  considerable  exertion,  he  got  so  near 
that  Mr.  Simons  left  the  tree  011  which  he  had  remained 
until  then,  and  swam  to  the  place  where  the  negro 
was.  Here  it  is  supposed  that  the  cold,  which  was 
excessive,  benumbed  him  in  such  a  manner,  that  he 
could  make  no  other  exertion  to  save  himself.  The 
person  from  whom  the  above  circumstances  were 
learned,  finding  they  made  no  further  attempts  to 
reach  the  land,  left  them  for  the  purpose  of  procuring 
other  assistance,  which,  alas !  came  too  late.  His  body, 
as  well  as  his  servant's,  was  found  on  Friday  morning, 
and  has  reduced  to  a  certainty  the  knowledge  of  the 
loss  which  his  friends,  the  world,  and  the  College  have 
sustained.  His  short  residence  among  us  had  endeared 
him  to  all,  as  it  served  to  display  the  meekness  of  his 
disposition,  and  the  strength  of  his  understanding.  He 
had  entered  on  the  duties  of  his  Professorship  with  a 
zeal,  not  to  say  enthusiasm,  which  promised  fair  to 
raise  him  to  the  first  eminence  among  chemists,  and 
his  manners  were  such  as  to  enforce  on  the  minds  of 
his  hearers  the  truths  which  he  taught,  and  would 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  63 

certainly  have  entitled  him  to  the  foremost  rank  among 
teachers.  The  youth  of  the  College,  by  their  conduct, 
have  shown  the  greatest  concern  for  his  death,  and 
have  adopted  mourning  as  a  proof  of  their  regrets  for 
the  loss  of  a  preceptor  so  beloved.  On  Sunday,  the 
Reverend  Dr.  Maxcy  delivered  an  elegant  and  appro- 
priate funeral  discourse  to  a  crowded  audience  in  the 
College  Chapel.  Our  feelings  will  not  allow  us  longer 
to  indulge  in  encomiums  on  the  merits  of  him  thus 
early  consigned  to  silence." 

Mr.  Gregg  resigned  his  tutorship  in  the  College  at 
the  clovse  of  the  ye  ir  1811.  The  following  brief  bio- 
graphical sketch  is  submitted : 

James  Gregg  was  born  on  the  4th  of  July,  1787,  in 
that  part  of  Marion  District  which  lies  on  the  west 
side  of  Pee  Dee  River.  His  ancestors  were  of  the 
best  stock  of  the  Revolution.  He  was  one  of  the 
younger  sons  of  James  Gregg,  who  held  the  commis- 
sion of  Captain  in  the  Militia,  and  served  under 
General  Marion  in  the  Revolutionary  war.  It  is  not 
necessary  for  me  to  say  to  the  reader  of  American 
history,  that  no  more  honorable  service  could  have 
been  performed.  It  is  certainly  true  that  none  of  the 
great  patriotic  band  encountered  more  perils,  and 
braved  more  hardships,  than  the  brigade  of  that  dis- 
tinguished partizan  officer ;  and  none  are  more  entitled 
to  the  gratitude  of  the  country.  Marion  has  been 
surnamed  the  Swamp  Fox.  This  term  has  a  literal 
significance.  When  the  country  was  pretty  well 
overrun  by  the  British,  when  hope  was  almost  extin- 
guished, and  many  of  the  patriots  had  sought  the 
protection  of  the  enemy,  this  great  man,  driven  from 


64  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

his  home,  sought  an  asylum  in  the  swamps,  and  there 
with  his  devoted  followers  maintained  the  spirit  of 
resistance.  Captain  Gregg  shared  this  glory  with  him, 
and  being  particularly  obnoxious  to  the  Tories,  was 
obliged  for  some  time  to  sleep  in  a  hollow  log  in  Poke 
Swamp,  to  avoid  their  pursuit.  His  house  was  burnt 
at  night,  and  his  wife  and  children  turned  out  of  doors. 
James  Gregg,  the  younger,  lost  both  parents  while 
still  a  boy,  and  was  the  youngest  but  one,  of  eight 
children  who  were  left.  He  expended  his  small  patri- 
mony in  acquiring  a  liberal  education.  One  of  the 
schools  to  which  he  went,  and  probably  the  last, 
preparatory  to  his  admission  to  the  South  Carolina 
College,  was  kept  by  Dr.  Thomas  Park,  afterwards 
Professor  of  Ancient  Languages  in  that  Institution. 
He  entered  the  Sophomore  Class  October  6th,  1806. 
Mr.  Gregg  graduated  in  1808  with  the  highest  honors 
of  his  class,  and  on  the  7th  of  December  was  elected 
Tutor  in  place  of  Mr.  Hooker,  resigned.  During  this 
month  he  was  appointed  Secretary  of  the  Faculty, 
and  held  the  office  until  December,  1812.  He  was 
the  Tutor  in  Mathematics,  and  it  has  already  been 
stated  in  another  place,  that  upon  the  retirement  of 
Professor  Perault,  the  entire  duties  of  the  depart- 
ment were  devolved  upon  him.  That  he  discharged 
them  most  ably  and  efficiently,  there  can  be  no  doubt; 
and  I  beg  leave  to  introduce  the  explicit  testimony  of 
Dr.  Maxcy,  in  his  report  to  the  Board  of  Trustees,  of 
November  27th,  1811.  He  says,  that  since  the  last 
meeting  of  the  Board,  Mr.  Gregg  has  instructed  in  the 
Mathematics,  and  that  the  success  of  his  labors  has 
been  great;  and  he  hesitates  not  to  say  that  they 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  65 

would  do  honor  to  any  Professor,  and  to  any  College. 
I  am  persuaded,  says  he,  that  the  promptness  and 
adequacy  displayed  on  the  occasion  of  the  examination 
would  have  given  great  satisfaction,  and  evinced  that 
the  true  interest  of  the  College  requires  the  continu- 
ance of  Mr.  Gregg's  services.  He  continued  his 
connection  with  the  College  for  a  year  after  this  period. 
I  know  not  precisely  when  he  left,  but  his  last  record 
as  Secretary  of  the  Faculty  bears  date  December  9th, 
1812.  There  is  no  doubt  that  his  qualifications  for 
the  Professorship,  which  he  filled  temporarily,  were 
eminent,  and  that  his  services  to  the  College  were 
very  valuable.  But  he  was  destined  to  move,  as  we 
shall  see,  in  another  and  very  different  sphere ;  and  in 
foregoing  the  rewards  of  science,  to  reap  the  not  less 
enduring  trophies  of  the  legal  profession.  During  his 
last  year  in  the  College,  he  studied  law,  it  is  believed, 
under  the  guidance  and  instruction  of  Anderson 
Crenshaw,  Esquire,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
May,  1813.  He  settled  in  Columbia,  and  it  was  not 
long  before  he  was  engaged  in  considerable  practice. 
Such  habits,  such  training,  such  solid  understanding, 
would  soon  have  commanded  success  any  where.  He 
was  a  perfect  model  as  a  man  of  business.  First  in 
his  office  in  the  morning,  he  was  the  last  to  leave  it  at 
night.  He  went  to  work  with  his  whole  soul  to  make 
himself  a  lawyer.  His  reading,  and  his  study  in  his 
profession  were  immense.  There  was  about  him  a 
capacity  for  toil,  a  love  for  work,  which  I  have  never 
known  surpassed.  He  felt  that  his  time  belonged  to 
his  clients,  and  he  brought,  therefore,  to  his  causes  a 
closeness  of  attention,  an  earnestness  of  purpose,  and 


66  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

a  measure  of  reflection,  which  never  relaxed  as  long 
as  they  were  under  litigation.  He  never  worked  at 
random.  His  life  was  one  of  perfect  system,  of  severe 
method.  He  valued  time,  and  was  not  content,  as  too 
many  are,  with  disposing  of  the  present,  but  he  appro- 
priated it  in  advance.  He  rose  to  the  highest  rank 
of  his  profession,  and  was  known  throughout  the  State 
as  one  of  her  ablest  and  most  profound  lawyers. 

For  the  last  thirty  years  of  his  life,  few  had  as  large 
and  lucrative  practice.  He  bore  his  part  in  the  most  im- 
portant causes  and  it  was  his  fortune  to  contend  for  vic- 
tory with  men  of  subtlest  intellect  and  rarest  learning  ; 
but  never  did  he  fail  to  acquit  himself  well.  His 
mind  was  eminently  logical ;  he  looked  to  the  argu- 
ment, and  nothing  else.  There  were  no  flowers  of 
rhetoric  strewn  along  his  path  ;  had  there  been  any, 
he  would  not  have  stopped  to  have  picked  them  up. 
For  the  reveries  of  fancy,  the  outpourings  of  the  imagi- 
nation, he  had  no  taste.  He  never  said  a  pretty  thing, 
and  never  relished  it  when  said  by  others.  He 
was  without  wit  or  humor,  but  could  laugh  as  heartily 
as  others  when  they  were  produced  by  his  friends. 
He  was  a  man  of  eloquence  only  in  the  sense  that 
earnestness,  love  of  the  right,  is  eloquence.  He  never 
attempted  to  touch  the  heart — to  stir  up  the  affections 
— to  move  the  passions.  To  persuasion  as  distinct 
from  argument,  he  was  an  utter  stranger.  He  was 
afraid  of  the  power  of  the  rhetorician,  and  was  rather 
disposed  to  regard  its  exertion  as  designed  to  cover 
falsehood,  and  defeat  the  truth.  From  what  I  have 
said,  the  reader  will  perceive  that  he  had  great 
strength  of  understanding  ;  that  it  was  logical,  direct, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  67 

and  united  with  great  earnestness  and  honesty  of 
spirit.  As  might  be  supposed,  his  speeches  at  the  bar 
or  elsewhere,  always  awakened  interest.  He  was 
master  of  his  subject,  for  he  never  spoke  without  pre- 
paration. He  could  thus  enlighten  and  instruct 
others.  He  was  no  believer  in  the  intuitions  of  genius 
— the  inspiration  of  the  moment.  He  firmly  thought 
that  knowledge  came  only  with  labor;  and  that  the 
highest  intellectual  gifts  could  make  no  proper  amends 
for  idleness  and  inattention.  There  was  nothing  of 
elegance,  nothing  of  ornateness  in  his  language ; 
but  his  command  of  words  was  easy,  and  his  per- 
ceptions being  clear,  he  never  failed  of  making 
himself  understood.  If  it  be  true  that  his  thoughts 
never  reached  the  highest  grandeur,  that  they 
never  overwhelmed  you  by  their  very  magnifi- 
cence, it  is  alike  true  that  they  were  never  com- 
monplace, and  never  offended  by  their  littleness 
and  insignificance.  There  was  the  fact,  then,  of  re- 
markable freedom  from  contrasts.  He  never  said  a 
foolish  thing ;  was  always  sensible,  always  exhibited  a 
ripe  judgment,  and  fortified  his  propositions  by  the 
best  reasons  which  they  would  allow.  In  his  speeches 
and  in  his  intercourse  with  men,  he  was  entirely  free 
from  affectation  and  mannerism.  There  was  nothing 
courtly,  nothing  artificial ;  but  there  was  a  plain 
bluntness,  which  sometimes  gave  offence  to  strangers, 
though  his  friends  knew  well  that  it  sprung  from  the 
honesty  -of  his  nature.  Never  have  I  known  one  of 
higher  virtue,  of  purer  morality.  His  personal  integ- 
rity was  without  blemish.  He  so  loved  truth  that  he 
almost  worshipped  it.  His  nature  was  always  with- 


68  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROI INA  COLLEGE. 

out  disguise,  and  all  saw  him  as  he  was.  Most  truly 
did  he  believe  "that  clear  and  sound  dealing  is  the 
honor  of  man's  nature,  and  that  mixture  of  falsehood 
is  like  alloy  in  coin  of  gold  and  silver,  which  may  make 
the  metal  work  the  better,  but  it  embaseth  it." 

It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  such  a  man  should 
enjoy  the  confidence  of  the  community  where  his  lot 
was  cast.  He  long  represented  the  people  of  Bichland 
in  the  Legislature  of  the  State,  and  then  voluntarily 
retired.  While  a  member  of  that  body,  he  had  a 
prominent  position.  Here  he  brought  to  bear  all  that 
energy,  industry,  and  attention  to  business  for  which 
he  was  remarkable. 

But  I  must  close  this  imperfect  sketch.  His  life 
had  been  marked  by  such  temperance  and  regularity, 
and  his  constitution  was  so  vigorous,  that  many  years 
of  usefulness  seemed  yet  before  him.  He  suffered  a 
paralytic  attack  in  January,  1852,  from  which  he 
never  recovered.  He  lingered  until  the  24th  October 
of  that  year,  and  then  expired,  leaving  to  a  wide 
circle  of  acquaintance  the  bright  example  of  the  most 
eminent  virtues  in  life,  and  of  a  quiet,  peaceful  resig- 
nation in  death. 

The  year  1812  exhibits  but  few  acts  of  discipline,  the 
general  order  of  the  College  being  good,  and  the  exam- 
ination of  the  classes  at  the  two  regular  periods  being 
approved  by  the  Faculty.  The  year  is  signalized,  how- 
ever* by  the  first  arraignment  for  "  exploding  fire-arms 
at  night"  in  the  campus;  an  offence  which,  under 
the  various  forms  which  the  advance  of  science  and 
human  ingenuity  have  contrived,  has  existed  to 
some  extent  throughout  all  the  vicissitudes  of  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  69 

College,  and  caused  as  much  petty  annoyance  as  any 
other. 

The  vacant  Professorship  of  Chemistry  was  filled  by 
the  election  of  Doctor  Edward  Dar^elJ  Smith  on 
the  26th  of  November,  1812.  Up  to  this  time,  the 
regular  salary  of  the  Professors  of  Moral  Philosophy, 
and  the  Languages,  had  been  $1,000,  while  the  Profes- 
sors of  the  other  departments  received  $1,600  per 
annum.  There  was  no  justice  in  this,  and  the  Board 
had  been  compelled  to  appropriate  from  its  contingent 
fund,  $600  to  each  of  the  first  mentioned  officers.  It 
was  now  determined  to  equalize  the  salaries,  and  the 
Legislature  was  asked  to  make  the  necessary  appro- 
priation for  that  purpose.  I  have  now  reached  the 
year  1813,  and  I  am  sure  that  the  reader  will  be 
surprised  at  some  of  its  developements.  It  was  a  year  of 
trouble,  of  trial,  and  of  difficulty.  The  records  of  the 
Faculty  exhibit  abundant  proof  of  inattention  to  study, 
of  repeated  acts  of  discipline  for  offences  of  almost 
every  possible  description  known  in  College  life,  and 
of  a  spirit  of  lawlessness  and  disaffection  more  wide- 
spread and  threatening  than  was  ever  manifested  in 
the  previous  history  of  the  Institution.  And  yet,  in 
its  walls,  at  that  very  time,  were  young  men  trim- 
ming their  midnight  lamps,  whose  souls  were  fired 
with  the  loftiest  ambition,  and  whose  genius  and  learn- 
ing were  to  shed  the  brightest  lustre  upon  the  Com- 
monwealth. In  that  number  were  McDuffie  and 
Legare ;  the  man  of  eloquence,  perhaps  never  sur- 
passed in  that  mystic  power  by  which  soul  is  infused 
into  soul,  and  the  multitude  made  captive  ;  and  that 
other  man  whose  profound  scholarship  and  varied 


70  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

endowments  have  enhanced  the  glory  of  American 
literature. 

On  the  22d  of  May  the  Trustees  expressed  to  the 
Faculty  their  unanimous  opinion  that  the  College 
exercises  ought  to  be  suspended  in  consequence  of  the 
alarming  instances  of  sudden  attacks  of  typhus  fever 
in  the  College,  and  of  the  opinion  of  physicians  that 
there  is  the  strongest  reason  to  believe  the  fever 
will  continue  with  increased  malignity  if  the  students 
are  not  dismissed.  Under  these  circumstances,  the 
exercises  were  at  once  suspended  until  October.  The 
long  holiday  seems,  however,  to  have  wrought  110 
change  of  spirit,  for  the  troubles  were  renewed  as  soon 
as  the  College  opened.  Among  other  things  which 
distinguished  the  last  quarter  of  the  year,  may  be 
mentioned  the  frequency  of  "  fisticuff;"  an  amusement 
certainly  very  unliterary  in  its  character,  but  not 
attended  with  any  particular  danger  to  life  or  limb. 
At  this  period,  for  some  reason  which,  does  not  appear, 
the  service  of  worship  on  the  Sabbath  was  abolished,  and 
the  students  permitted  to  select  the  religious  denomi- 
nation with  which  they  might  choose  to  connect  them- 
selves ;  and  monitors  were  appointed  for  each  Church, 
with  instructions  to  report  the  absentees  to  the  Presi- 
dent every  Sunday  evening.  But  I  proceed  to  a 
matter  of  a  very  delicate  nature — I  mean  the  issue 
between  the  President  and  the  Board  of  Trustees.  It 
is  not  my  purpose  to  take  sides,  to  turn  partizan.  But 
the  truth  of  history  demands  that  I  call  the  attention  of 
my  readers  to  the  matter.  I  must  state,  then,  that  the 
Board  of  Trustees  censured  Dr.  Maxcy  in  no  measured 
terms  for  his  administration.  No  man  ever  had 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  71 

bestowed  upon  him  a  larger  measure  of  confidence  than 
was  enjoyed  by  this  gentleman,  from  the  first  day  of  his 
connection  to  the  present  time.  It  was  really  without 
limit.  Having  had  great  experience  as  the  head  of 
two  Northern  Colleges,  and  being  called  to  aid  in 
organizing  the  South  Carolina  College  under  the  Act 
of  Incorporation,  it  was  very  natural  that  the  highest 
value  should  attach  to  his  suggestions,  and  that  fewr 
should  be  disposed  to  question  his  calmly-expressed 
and  deliberate  convictions.  Every  thing  about  it, 
therefore,  bore  the  impress  of  his  hand.  It  has  been 
stated  already,  that  there  was  at  this  period  an  increase 
of  disorder.  What  the  cause  was  which  provoked  it, 
I  cannot  tell.  Of  course  the  Trustees  were  mortified 
and  disappointed ;  and,  in  a  short  time,  still  stronger 
and  very  different  feeling  exhibited  itself.  It  was  very 
natural  to  visit  the  state  of  things  upon  the  President ; 
upon  the  man  who  had  had  his  own  way,  and  who 
had  been  clothed  with  a  power  amounting  almost  to  des- 
potism. That  they  were  honest;  that  they  labored  for 
the  good  of  the  College  alone,  and  that  no  unworthy 
motive  could  possibly  determine  their  conduct,  cannot 
be  questioned.  It  may  be  that  there  was  some  remiss- 
ness,  some  neglect  of  duty,  on  the  part  of  the  Faculty. 
•  It  would  be  cruel  to  suppose  otherwise,  for  that  would 
be  to  deny  to  the  Trustees  either  the  virtue  of  common 
sense,  or  common  honesty.  At  the  same  time  it  is 
hard  to  believe,  that  the  charges  preferred  against  the 
President  are  true  to  anything  like  the  extent  to 
which  the  accusation  goes  ;  for  that  would  be  to  assert 
that  the  past  furnishes  no  security  for  the  future,  and 
that  a  long  life  of  probity  and  fidelity  furnishes  no 


72  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

sufficient  basis  for  confidence.  I  have  come  to  iny 
own  conclusions  in  the  matter.  The  discipline  of 
the  College  was,  in  some  material  aspects,  defective. 
The  Faculty  were  always  prompt  to  pass  sentence 
against  offenders ;  but,  in  too  many  instances,  it  was 
but  a  mere  farce.  They  turned  too  ready  an  ear  to 
the  promises  of  the  culprit,  and  the  petitions  of  the 
students.  This  policy  may  succeed  for  a  brief  period, 
but  all  experience  proves  that,  if  continued,  it  is  sure 
to  encourage  the  violation  of  law,  and  to  engender  a 
spirit  which  strikes  at  the  foundation  of  all  authority. 
In  reading  the  records,  one  is  struck  by  the  very 
anomalous  fact,  that  the  grossest  offences  were  perpe- 
trated with  the  greatest  impunity.  In  these  cases  the 
severest  penalties  were  promptly  proclaimed,  and 
these  were  the  cases,  of  course,  which  secured  media- 
tion and  interference.  A  suspension  of  a  month  or 
two  passed  without  notice ;  but  whenever  an  offence  of 
a  grave  character  was  committed,  which  subjected  the 
perpetrator  to  a  suspension  of  eight  or  ten  months, 
or  a  year,  the  sympathies  of  the  College  were  at  once 
aroused,  and  steps  were  taken  either  to  bring  about  -a 
mitigation  of  the  punishment,  or  its  removal.  These 
efforts  generally  succeeded.  But  it  was  not  the 
Faculty  alone  who  erred  in  this  particular  ;  the  Board  • 
of  Trustees  pursued  .the  same  mistaken  line  of  policy. 
From  the  first  years  of  the  College,  offences  of  an 
aggravated  character  were  committed,  and  students 
reported  for  expulsion.  This  is  the  highest  penalty  of 
of  the  law,  and  there  is  a  pressing  necessity  that  it 
have  a  place  in  every  code  for  the  government  of  a 
College.  I  am  not  aware  that  up  to  this  period  there 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  73 

had  been  a  case  of  expulsion ;  there  may  have  been  one, 
though  the  records  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  furnish 
no  conclusive  evidence  of  it.  The  greatest  offences 
had  been  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  Board ; 
students  had  been  convicted  of  gross  immoralities ;  the 
houses  of  officers  of  the  College  had  been  assailed ; 
Professors  had  been  pronounced  "  liars"  to  their  faces  ; 
the  entire  Faculty,  when  assembled,  had  been  insulted 
and  abused;  for  these,  and  other  offences  of  like  charac- 
ter, students  had  been  suspended  and  reported  for 
expulsion ;  and  the  Board,  after  due  consultation, 
ordered  their  restoration  to  their  classes.  But  I  do  not 
acquit  the  Faculty  of  error  in  the  matter;  for  in  every 
instance  I  believe  it  was  done  by  the  concurrent 
action  of  the  two  Boards.  Such  a  state  of  things  is 
wholly  inconsistent  with  respect  for  the  laws,  or  the 
powers  charged  with  their  administration.  I  need  not  • 
speak  of  the  utter  inefficiency  of  any  criminal  code, 
however  sanguinary  it  may  be  in  its  provisions,  when 
one  can  natter  himself  with  the  hope  of  escape,  even 
after  conviction,  from  its  .penalties.  But  what  became 
of  the  indictment  framed  against  the  President!  I 
can  give  very  little  information  on  the  subject.  A 
few  facts,  however,  will  be  added  from  the  record.  At 
the  meeting  of  the  21st  of  April,  the  resolution  of 
censure  was  passed,  and  communicated  to  him;  and 
on  the  24th  the  Board  received  a  letter  from  him  in 
reply  to  the  resolution.  The  charges  were  now  drawn 
out  at  full  length,  and  committed  to  the  Standing 
Committee,  with  instructions  to  communioate  them  to 
Dr.  Maxcy.  It  was  with  that  body,  then,  that  the 
issue  was  made,  and  the  battle  fought.  There  is  a 


74  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

tradition  that  he  acquitted  himself  with  masterly 
power,  and  triumphant  eloquence;  that  all  felt  the 
weight  of  his  genius,  and  were  carried  away  by  its 
resistless  and  overwhelming  influences.  How  much  of 
truth  there  is  in  this,  I  know  not;  but  I  give  this  fact 
from  the  record,  and  the  reader  may  draw  his  own 
inference.  The  Board  had  its  next  meeting  on 
November  24th,  and  not  the  slightest  allusion  is  made 
to  any  proceeding  against  him,  and  the  case  is  abruptly 
terminated  by  a  nolle  prosequi.  Relations  of  perfect 
harmony  subsist  between  them,  and  the  President  is 
in  his  former  position  of  power  and  influence.  The 
Standing  Committee  bear  testimony  to  the  diligence 
and  fidelity  of  the  several  officers  of  the  College,  to 
the  state  of  discipline,  and  to  the  general  good  conduct 
of  the  students.  I  can  form  some  conception  of  the 
joyous  feeling  which  now  animated  the  bosoms  of 
all;  of  the  return  of  that  mutual  confidence  which 
past  distrust  had  served  only  to  increase,  and  of  the 
springing  up  of  a  hope  in  reference  to  the  future 
destiny  of  the  College,  with  far  more  than  its  pristine 
freshness  and  beauty.  But  this  was  a  delusion.  The 
difficulties  with  the  President  were  most  happily 
terminated;  but  a  storm  far  more  terrific  than  any 
which  had  yet  been  experienced  was  gathering,  and  was 
soon  to  burst  with  maddened  fury  upon  the  College. 
Quiet  had  not  been  restored.  The  love  of  law,  the 
principle  of  obedience,  had  not  yet  asserted  its  rightful 
supremacy.  The  relation  of  the  Faculty  and  the 
students  was  not  the  relation  of  friends,  but  in  too 
many  instances  of  enemies.  At  the  first  meeting  in 
January,  1814,  the  discipline  had  to  be  enforced  with 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  YO 

no  common  severity.  Absences  from  the  room  after  the 
ringing  of  the  bell  at  evening  were  of  common  occur- 
rence ;  the  peace  of  the  town  was  frequently  disturbed 
by  noise  and  riot,  and  something  had  to  be  done  to 
stay  the  tide  of  lawlessness  which  was  threatening  to 
sweep  every  thing  before  it.  The  Faculty  resolved  to 
punish  the  offence  by  suspension.  This  was  made 
known  in  the  Chapel  by  tKe  President,  but  it  availed 
nothing.  Citizens  of  the  town  made  great  complaint 
of  the  conduct  of  students ;  the  decencies  of  public 
worship  in  some  of  the  churches  were  violated ; 
attempts  were  made  to  take  the  bell ;  "  disrespectful 
and  insulting  behavior"  was  indulged  towards  the 
officers  of  the  College ;  studies  were  neglected,  and^ 
unlawful  combinations  formed  to  defeat  the  execu- 
tion of  the  laws.  Under  these  circumstances,  the 
Faculty,  after  a  thorough  investigation,  suspended  three 
students,  and  ordered  them  to  leave  the  walls  forth- 
with, with  the  condition  that  if  the  order  was  not 
obeyed,  they  would  be  reported  for  expulsion.  This 
occurred  on  the  8th  of  February.  On  that  night  a 
riot  of  a  most  alarming  character  burst  forth  in  the 
College  walls.  It  was  but  the  last  act  of  the  drama 
which  had  been  playing  for  a  twelve-month ;  the  em- 
bodiment of  all  those  elements  of  disaffection  which,  as 
has  been  seen,  had  been  operating,  though  somewhat 
insidiously,  with  such  destructive  energy.  I  will  not 
ask  the  reader  to  follow  me  through  all  its  revolting 
and  disgusting  details,  but  the  truth  of  history  demands 
that  I  give  some  account  of  it.  Immediately  after  the 
suspension  alluded  to,  was  announced,  indications  of 
a  riotous  disposition  were  seen  among  several  students, 


76  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

which  were  fomented  by  the  suspended  students,  who 
went  to  the  house  of  a  Professor  and  made  threats  of  per- 
sonal violence.  These  indications  continued  throughout 
the  day,  and  notwithstanding  a  very  serious  and  im- 
pressive address  by  the  President  at  evening  prayers, 
immediately  after  the  ringing  of  the  seven  o'clock  bell, 
a  number  of  students  broke  out  into  open  and  formid- 
able rebellion.  Some  of  them  in  various  disguises, 
having  drank  and  distributed  spirituous  liquors  at  the 
College  well,  burnt  a  Professor  in  effigy,  whilst  others, 
also  in  disguise,  were  stationed  as  guards  at  the  houses 
of  the  Professors  to  prevent  their  coming  out.  After 
the  burning  of  the  effigy,  a  body  of  students,  with  a 
drum  and  fife,  rushed  into  the  centre  building  of  the 
Northern  College,  broke  open  the  door  of  the  Library, 
did  great  damage  to  the  windows,  and  carried  off  the  bell 
and  destroyed  it.  About  the  same  time  a  furious  attack 
was  made  with  brick-bats  on  the  windows  of  a  room 
occupied  by  a  Tutor  of  the  College,  and  on  the  dwelling 
house  of  a  Professor,  to  the  great  hazard  of  the  lives 
of  his  family,  who  were  known  to  be  in  the  house,  and 
who,  in  consequence  of  the  attack,  were  forced  to  leave 
it.  I  read  from  the  record  that  the  panic  was  general; 
that  "although  the  dwellings  of  the  other  Professors 
were  not  thus  assaulted,  their  families  were  greatly 
terrified  at  such  a  scene  of  savage  brutality."  But 
the  work  of  destruction  did  not  stop  here.  The 
windows  of  "the  College  rooms"  of  several  Professors 
were  broken,  and  the  windows  of  some  of  the  rooms 
occupied  by  students,  and  of  the  apparatus-room,  were 
damaged.  From  this  hasty  sketch,  the  reader  may 
form  some  idea  of  the  riot.  It  was  still  raging,  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  77 

the  Faculty  felt  that  they  were  powerless.  What  was 
to  be  done  ?  Application  was  made  to  the  Trustees 
residing  in  the  town,  and  they  applied  to  the  Intendant 
for  a  civil  force  to  quell  it.  But  he  replied  that  there 
was  no  such  force  competent  to  the  purpose,  and  he 
called  out  the  Militia  of  the  Town.  When  the  force 
arrived,  some  resistance  was  offered,  but  after  this  had 
ceased,  much  abusive  language  was  used  for  some  time 
by  some  of  the  students,  and  it  was  found  necessary  to 
keep  a  strong  guard  in  one  of  the  Professor's  houses 
for  the  whole  night.  The  names  of  certain  of  the 
students  had  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  Faculty, 
and  these  names  w^ere  communicated  to  the  Trustees. 

It  was  a  period  of  general  alarm,  and  no  one  felt 
safe  in  his  person.  The  Faculty  therefore  resolved 
to  request  the  Trustees  to  devise  some  method  by 
which  the  students,  whose  names  were  reported  to 
them,  should  be  immediately  placed  in  close*  confine- 
ment, until  they  could  be  taken  away  by  their  parents 
and  guardians,  as  without  this  proceeding  it  would  be 
dangerous  and  impolitic  to  attempt  any  punishment ; 
and  to  procure  a  sufficient  guard  to  maintain  the  good 
order  of  the  College,  and  the  safety  of  the  families  of 
the  officers,  during  the  prevalence  of  the  present  rebel- 
lious temper  among  the  students. 

To  complete  my  historical  narrative,  it  is  only 
necessary  to  give  the  final  action  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees.  It  is  marked  by  most  commendable  vigor 
and  determination.  All  students  who  were  reported 
for  expulsion  had  the  sentence  executed  against  them. 
Some  had  prosecutions  commenced  against  them, 
which  were  finally  arrested,  on  condition  that  they 


78  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

pay  for  all  the  damage  done  to  the  public  property. 
After  a  careful  investigation,  the  Board  conclude  that 
the  President  of  the  College  is  as  diligent  in  the 
discharge  of  his  duties  as  the  state  of  his  health  will 
permit,  anfl  that  his  lectures  and  instructions  are 
delivered  with  ability;  that  Professors  Park,  Mont- 
gomery and  Smith,  have  well  discharged  their  respec- 
tive duties,  and  have  been  faithful  in  enforcing  the  dis- 
cipline of  the  College. 

I  have  now  concluded  my  account  of  the  riot ;  but, 
before  I  take  leave  of  the  subject,  I  would  ask  the 
attention  of  the  reader  for  a  few  moments  longer.  It 
may  be  asked,  why  was  it  not  passed  by  altogether,  as 
such  disclosures  must  injure  the  reputation  of  the 
Institution  ?  I  will  answer  the  question  briefly. ,  My 
regard  for  truth  imposed  it  upon  me  as  a  duty.  I 
have  taken  my  pen  to  write  the  history  of  the  College. 
I  have  dealt  in  no  personalities.  I  have  presented 
acts,  things.  I  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  few 
comparatively,  were  concerned  originally  in  it,  and 
that  the  many  were  drawn  in  without  any  criminal 
design,  and  that  they  did  not  participate  in  the  acts  of 
gross  violence  which  I  have  given.  But  if  it  be  that 
the  students  of  the  present  day  are  not  quite  so  bad 
as  their  fathers,  in  the  name  of  justice  let  them  have 
credit  for  it.  Again,  it  is  but  telling  the  story  of  the 
trials  and  difficulties  through  which  the  College  has 
passed,  and  exhibits  its  inherent  power  and  energy. 
What  if  it  had  to  be  subjected  to  the  ordeal  of  fire  !  It 
has  stood  the  test.  Further,  it  furnishes  an  occasion  for 
doing  honor  to  the  noble  men,  the  members  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  and  Faculty,  who,  in  the  midst  of 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  79 

difficulties  which  would  have  appalled  common 
hearts,  only  strove  the  harder ;  and  by  the  exercise 
of  a  high  virtue  and  a  profound  judgment,  not  only 
saved  the  College,  but  laid  the  foundations,  broad  and 
deep,  for  its  future  success. 

At  this  meeting,  November  30th,  Professor  Black- 
burn tendered  his  resignation,  and  it  was  accepted,  to 
take  effect  on  the  1st  of  July.  The  year  closed  with 
a  great  improvement  in  the  condition  of  the  College. 
The  Standing  Committee  assure  the  Board  that,  "  upon 
the  whole,  there  is  much  less  dissipation,  more  atten- 
tion to  order  and  the  rules  of  the  College,  than  pre- 
vailed some  time  since,  which  is  partly  attributable  to 
the  stricter  discipline  maintained  since  the  riots  in 
February  last,  and  the  sending  away  many  refractory 
young  men  ;  and  partly  to  a  real  and  progressive  im- 
provement in  the  young  men  themselves."  I  have 
here  to  deplore  the  existence  of  that  evil  which  has 
ever  been  the  curse  of  our  College;  of  that  degrading 
vice  which  may  be  pronounced  the  mother  of  all 
others;  which  has  blighted  the  blossom  in  its  bud, 
crushed  the  rising  hope,  extinguished  the  fire  of 
genius,  and  sent  thousands  of  our  youth  to  an  early 
and  dishonored  grave.  I  mean  intoxicating  drink. 
The  Standing  Committee  close  their  report  with  the 
remark,  "that  if  proper  restraints  could  be  imposed 
upon  the  tavern  keepers  and  retailers  of  spirituous 
liquors,  there  is  good  reason  to  hope  that  the  discipline 
of  the  College  could  be  firmly  maintained." 

George  Blackburn  was  born  in  the  county  of  Wick- 
low,  Ireland,  December  26th,  1765.  He  was  a  gradu- 
ate of  Trinity  College,  Dublin.  In  August,  1800,  he 


80  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

arrived  with  his  father  and  family  at  Philadelphia. 
He  brought  letters  to  Dr.  Rush,  and  other  gentlemen, 
and  commenced  a  military  academy  in  that  city.  He 
soon  abandoned  the  scheme  and  removed  to  Virginia, 
where  he  opened  an  academy,  which  had  considerable 
success.  In  a  few  years  he  was  called  to  the  Profes- 
sorship of  Mathematics  and  Astronomy  in  William 
and  Mary  College.  November  28th,  1811,  he  was 
elected  Professor  of  Mathematics  and  Astronomy  in 
the  South  Carolina  College.  November  30th,  1814, 
he  tendered  his  resignation;  and  it  was  accepted,  to 
take  effect  on  the  1st  of  July.  It  is  worthy  of  men- 
tion that,  in  the  College  vacation  of  1812,  he  'was 
.employed,  on  the  part  of  South  Carolina,  to  run  the 
boundary  line  between  North  and  South  Carolina; 
and  after  leaving  the  College,  by  the  appointment  of 
Governor  Allston,  he  made  certain  observations  of 
longitude  and  latitude  designed  for  a  map  of  the  State. 
After  his  removal  from  Columbia  he  made  an  extensive 
tour  to  the  South- Western  States,  but  finally  settled 
at  Baltimore,  where  he  assisted,  with  Dr.  Jennings,  in 
founding  the  College  of  Asbury.  From  Baltimore  he 
returned  to  Columbia  in  1821,  where  he  continued  to 
reside  until  his  death,  which  took  place  August  13th, 
1823.  A  beautiful  and  costly  monument  in  the  ceme- 
tery of  the  Episcopal  Church,  marks  the  spot  where 
rest  his  mortal  remains.  It  is  now  proper  to  speak  of 
his  qualifications  for  the  important  chair  which  he 
filled.  I  do  not  know  that  there  is  anything  extrava- 
gant in  the  testimony  of  "an  old  student,"  borne 
thirty-four  years  ago,  "that  he  was  a  man  of  quick 
and  vigorous  understanding,  an  able  mathematician, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  81 

and  most  excellent  instructor.'"  In  a  letter  now 
before  me,  from  one  of  the  most  distinguished  gradu- 
ates of  the  College,  the  following  words  are  to  be 
found : — "  Professor  Blackburn  was  a  first-rate  mathe- 
matician; he  taught  Mathematics  as  a  science,  and 
not  as  a  matter  of  memory.  From  him  I  learned 
the  demonstration  of  many  difficult  problems,  and 
with  his  aid  I  understood  much  of  that  abstruse  and 
difficult  science,  as  applied  to  Natural  Philosophy  and 
Astronomy.  He  was  an  irascible  gentleman,  and  of 
course  subjected  to  many  petty  annoyances  in  College." 
No  doubt  the  Professor  had  his  trials,  for  who  in  a 
College  has  been  exempt  ?  A  conscientious  man  is 
mortified,  and  disappointed  by  the  little  progress  made* 
in  his  department.  His  highest  reward  is  to  see  his 
classes  doing  well.  In  no  other  way  can  he  feel  that 
he  is  rendering  valuable  service.  It  is,  indeed,  a  trial 
of  temper,  when  a  Professor  perceives  that  his  best 
efibrts,  continued  from  day  to  day,  pass  for  nothing; 
when  he  fails  to  arouse  the  indolent,  and  to  impart 
even  a  higher  life  to  the  ambitious.  But  whatever 
may  be  the  form  of  vexation  and  disappointment, 
whatever  the  nature  of  the  occasion,  nothing  can  be 
gained  by  an  exhibition  of  temper.  I  know  not  pre- 
cisely how  it  is,  but  the  world  expects  a  Professor  to 
banish  passion  from  his  nature.  After  all,  however, 
it  may  be  a  compliment  to  his  vocation.  It  may  be 
that  a  Professor  is  regarded  in  the  light  of  a  philoso- 
pher;  and  philosophers  have  certainly  fallen  short  of 
their  work  if  they  have  not  acquired  a  mastery  of 
certain  mental  infirmities.  Now,  waiving  the  ques- 
tion, whether  the  history  of  philosophers  proves  that 


82  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

they  have  achieved  emancipation  from  the  common 
infirmities  of  our  race,  I  must  insist  that  Professors 
in  Colleges  are  very  much  like  other  men,  and  claim 
no  exemption  from  the  lot  of  humanity.  Something 
must  be  pardoned  to  them ;  they  are  still  flesh  and 
blood,  though  engaged  in  the  pursuit  of  letters ; 
and  certainly  there  is  no  calling  which  taxes  the 
patience  more  than  that  of  an  instructor.  With  this 
apology  for  the  class  generally,  I  now  give  the  follow- 
ing incident  in  the  life  of  Professor  Blackburn  while 
in  this  College,  with  the  remark,  that  it  proves  he  had 
his  share  of  irritability,  and  that  his  conduct  was 
sometimes  unwise  and  impolitic.  I  give  it  upon  the 
authority  of  the  gentleman  to  whom  I  have  already 
alluded.  The  Senior  Class  was  very  remiss  in  its 
attendance  upon  him.  It  is  not  a  thing  of  play  to 
take  hold  of  the  Calculus;  to  be  required  to  compre- 
hend the  awful  mysteries  of  the  transcendental  mathe- 
matics ;  to  bear  a  decent  part  in  company  with 
Newton,  Leibnitz  and  LaPlace;  and  I  can  well 
sympathize  with  the  men  to  whom  the  fates  have 
decreed  such  a  destiny.  But  the  law  required  it,  and 
every  good  citizen  is  bound  to  yield  obedience.  And 
it  is,  too,  the  occasion  to  test  the  courage.  There  is 
no  glory  in  reciting  an  easy  lesson,  as  there  is  no  glory 
in  achieving  an  easy  victory.  A  tough  lesson  is  a  real 
battle.  It  is  marked  by  the  "  majestic  pomp  of  pre- 
paration, the  breathless  pause,  the  roaring  onset,  the 
struggle,  the  carnage ;  and  the  teeth  are  set,  the  breath 
held  in,  and  the  blood  rushing  back  to  the  heart." 
There  is  true  glory  to  be  won  by  the  discharge  of  duty 
on  such  an  occasion,  and  is  not  he  a  coward  who  will 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  83 

shrink  back  alarmed  and  appalled !  The  class  was 
alarmed,  and  many  declined  the  contest.  The  Profes- 
sor remarked  to  them,  "  that  it  might  be  that  half  of 
his  class  were  very  smart  fellows,  for  he  never  saw 
them ;  but  the  half  who  attended  his  recitations  were 
as  laborious  as  oxen,  but  as  stupid  as  asses."  This, 
of  course,  led  to  a  rebellion.  The  Professor  certainly 
went  too  far.  Nothing  could  justify  such  language. 
Finally  a  treaty  of  peace  was  signed  by  the  Professor 
and  class,  and  the  usual  relations  restored.  I  have 
given  to  Professor  Blackburn  the  fullest  intellectual 
qualifications  for  his  chair,  for  this  is  his  reputation. 
I  know  no  objection  to  him,  but  that  which  has  been 
stated.  His  life,  in  consequence,  was  not  a  pleasant 
one  in  College.  He  was  unquestionably  a  man  of 
talent,  and  of  mathematical  knowledge.  He  cannot 
be  said  then,  in  any  sense,  to  have  dishonored  his 
chair.  Probably  he  was  one  of  the  best  mathema- 
ticians who  ever  presided  over  the  department;  and 
with  all  his  faults,  (which  I  think  are  venial,)  he  will 
be  remembered  as  one  who  has  contributed  to  the 
permanent  reputation  of  the  College. 

I  am  sorry  to  remark,  that  the  first  half  of  the 
year  1815  exhibits  instances  of  disorder.  One  might 
reasonably  have  calculated  that  the  terrible  storm, 
through  which  the  College  had  just  passed,  would 
have  been  succeeded  by  a  period  of  extraordinary 
calm  and  quiet.  But  it  was  otherwise.  The  energy 
of  the  Faculty,  sustained  as  it  was  by  the  Board  of 
Trustees,  was  not  without  effect ;  but  there  was  still 
a  constant  necessity  for  vigilance  and  discipline.  The 
troubles  and  the  difficulties  were  much  increased 


84  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

by  the  ill  health  of  Dr.  Maxcy,  who,  in  consequence, 
was  generally  absent  from  the  meetings  of  the  Faculty, 
and  unable  to  take  part  in  their  proceedings.  This 
caused  interruption  in  the  course  of  instruction ;  and 
all  who  have  had  experience  in  College  life  know  that 
such  interruptions  never  fail  to  invite  idleness  and 
dissipation.  The  Mathematical  Chair  being  vacant, 
the  Trustees,  at  their  meeting  of  April  26th,  elected 
the  Rev.  Christian  Hanckel,  Tutor  of  that  depart- 
ment. The  truth  of  history  requires  me  to  add,  that 
at  a  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  on  the  29th  of 
November,  a  resolution  was  submitted  to  disconnect 
Dr.  Maxcy  with  the  College,  which,  after  full  discussion, 
was  ordered  to  lie  on  the  table  until  the  next  stated 
meeting  in  November,  1816.  The  report  of  the 
Standing  Committee,  made  at  an  adjourned  meeting 
held  the  next  day,  November  30,  1815,  contains  some 
very  important  suggestions,  which  are  worthy  of 
notice.  These  suggestions  concern  the  curriculum  of 
studies,  and  propose  important  and  valuable  additions. 
The  fact  is  interesting,  as  it  is  a  fact  of  progress. 
Thus  far  the  course  of  instruction  had  probably  been 
as  complete  as  circumstances  would  allow,  or  the  neces- 
sities of  the  country  demanded.  But  a  College,  per- 
fect in  all  its  provisions  and  arrangements,  could  not 
be  the  work  of  a  day  or  a  year.  Time  was  necessary, 
and  it  could  only  expand  by  a  slow  and  gradual 
process  to  its  full  proportions. 

But  I  will  let  the  Committee  assign  their  own  reasons 
for  their  suggestions.  It  is  therefore  submitted,  that 
in  order  to  keep  pace  with  the  growing  knowledge  of 
the  world,  and  to  place  this  Institution  on  a  footing 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  85 

with  the  great  and  improving  Colleges  of  the  Northern 
States,  it  would  be  advisable  to  establish  new  Profes- 
sorships and  Tutorships  whenever  the  prosperous 
circumstances  of  the  country  should  induce  a  belief 
that  the  Legislature  would  provide  for  them.  Profes- 
sorships for  Political  Economy,  for  Elocution  and  Belles 
Lettres,  and  others,  might  be  usefully  established  in 
succession  according  to  the  order  of  their  importance ; 
and  if  the  requisites  for  admission  into  the  lower 
classes  were  made  more  extensive,  a  larger  course  in 
the  sciences  could  be  given.  But  they  would  press 
more  particularly  upon  the  Board  the  immediate 
creation  of  a  Professorship  of  Mineralogy,  to  be  united 
with  the  Professorship  of  Chemistry.  The  appoint- 
ment of  an  additional  Tutor  was  also  recommended. 
Tutor  Hanckel  was  elected  Professor  of  Mathematics, 
December  1st.  The  College  has  now  been  in  operation 
eleven  years,  and  it  may  be  of  interest  to  state  particu- 
larly the  course  of  instruction  pursued  at  this  period. 
'The  reader  will  thus  be  enabled  to  note  the  modifica- 
tions which  it  underwent  from  the  first  year  of  its 
existence,  and  to  institute  a  more  perfect  comparison 
with  its  future  and  progressive  development.  In 
June  the  Senior  class  was  examined  in  Chemistry, 
Logic  and  Elocution.  The  Tutor  of  Mathematics 
had  not  yet  entered  upon  his  duties.  In  November 
it  was  examined  on  the  Elements  of  Criticism,  on 
certain  branches  of  Natural  Philosophy,  on  Moral  Phi- 
losophy, and  on  Astronomy.  In  May  the  Junior 
Class  was  examined  on  the  Elements  of  Criticism, 
the  Evidences  of  Christianity  and  Moral  Philosophy ; 
in  December,  upon  Algebra,  Geometry,  Trigonometry, 


86  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

&c.,  Kames'  Elements  of  Criticism,  Logic,  Moral 
Philosophy,  Paley's  Natural  Theology.  In  June 
the  Sophomore  Class  was  examined  in  Algebra, 
Geography  and  Homer;  and,  in  November,  in  Geo- 
graphy, Sheridan's  Lectures,  Algebra,  Telemachus 
(French),  Horace,  and  Homer's  Iliad.  In  June  the 
Freshman  Class  was  examined  in  Xenophon,  Horace 
and  Arithmetic  ;  and,  in  December,  in  Horace,  Xeno- 
phon's  Cyropsedia,  Cicero,  English  Grammar  and 
Arithmetic.  This  seems  to  embrace  the  entire  course 
of  instruction  which  was  actually  pursued  in  the  year 
1815  ;  and  the  reader,  I  am  sure,  will  agree  with  me, 
that  it  is  limited  and  imperfect.  It  should  be 
remarked,  however,  that  owing  to  the  ill  health  of 
Dr.  Maxcy,  and  other  causes,  the  course  was  far  more 
incomplete  than  was  designed.  To  the  above  should 
be  added,  as  parts  of  the  regular  course,  the  instruc- 
tion of  the  Senior  Class  by  the  President,  in  the  Phi- 
losophy of  the  Human  Mind,  and  in  the  higher 
Mathematics  by  the  Professor  of  that  Department: 
It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  no  instruction  was  given 
to  the  two  upper  classes  in  Greek  and  Latin,  and  these 
departments  had  not,  therefore,  the  prominence  which 
has  been  accorded  them  in  latter  times.  Upon  the 
whole,  the  year  1815  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  a  bril- 
liant or  a  very  successful  year  in  the  history  of  the 
College.  It  is  signalized  by  unusual  inattention  to 
study,  by  many  acts  of  discipline,  and  by  a  want  of 
proper  harmony  between  the  President  and  the 
Board  of  Trustees. 

The  year  1816  opened  under  favorable   auspices. 
At  an  occasional  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  87 

January  15th,  a  petition  from  the  students  was  pre- 
sented by  Dr.  Maxcy.  The  object  of  the  meeting  was 
to  decide  upon  the  propriety  of  dismissing  the  students 
for  a  limited  time,  on  account  of  the  prevalence  of  the 
influenza,  which,  according  to  the  testimony  of  the 
physicians  of  the  town,  was  of  a  very  dangerous  type, 
and  rapidly  increasing.  The  Board,  after  postponing 
the  petition  indefinitely,  finally  resolved  to  suspend  the 
College  exercises  for  a  fortnight.  The  duties  were 
resumed  at  the  appointed  time,  and  the  state  of  the 
College  may  be  clearly  perceived  from  the  records  of 
the  Faculty.  On  their  minutes  of  April  8th,  I  find  the 
following  language : — "  The  moral  deportment  of  the 
students  of  the  College,  and  their  attention  to  study, 
have  been  such  for  some  time  past,  that  the  Faculty 
deem  very  rigorous  discipline,  for  the  present,  unne- 
cessary." The  examinations  of  the  classes  were  held 
at  the  regular  periods,  and  never  since  the  establish- 
ment of  the  College  had  they  been  so  full  and  com- 
plete. The  course  of  instruction  for  the  year  had 
been  more  thorough  probably,  than  at  any  former  time? 
and  never,  perhaps,  for  so  long  a  period,  had  the 
general  order  and  attention  to  the  studies  been  as 
good.  There  were  but  few  violations  of  law,  and 
these  were  not  of  an  aggravated  character.  The 
Board  of  Trustees  and  the  President  seem  to  have 
shaken  hands  and  buried  their  difficulties ;  the  best 
relations  existed  between  the  Faculty  and  students, 
and  a  spirit  of  good  will  pervaded  the  bosoms  of  all. 
What  a  contrast  with  the  year  immediately  preceding ! 
Now  all  apprehensions  were  dispelled;  the  friends 
of  the  College  took  fresh  courage,  hope  was  re-kindled. 


88  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

and  the  future  was  full  of  brightness  and  glory.  It 
was  a  year  to  be  remembered.  The  College  had  passed 
through  trials  and  difficulties  which  had  nigh  proved 
fatal;  but  it  was  now  triumphant.  Men  flattered 
themselves  that  the  evil  day  had  passed,  never 
to  return;  and  that,  henceforth,  it  would  pursue 
the  even  tenor  of  its  way,  freed  from  those  disturb- 
ing influences  which  had  so  frequently  checked  its 
progress.  Sad  delusion !  There  were  many  and 
bitter  trials  before  it.  Its  strength  was  to  be  more 
severely  tested;  but  this  strength  was  to  prove 
sufficient  for  any  emergency,  and  in  the  end  the  most 
sanguine  expectations  were  to  be  realized.  Some  may 
suppose  that  the  picture  which  I  have  sketched  of  the 
College  in  1816  is  over-drawn.  Let  us  see  what  Dr. 
Maxcy  says  of  it  in  his  report  to  the  Trustees  on  the 
26th  of  November  : — "  I  regret  extremely,"  says  he, 
"that  it  has  not  been  convenient  for  the  Trustees  to 
attend  the  public  examinations,  that  they  might 
have  witnessed  the  proficiency  of  the  classes.  With- 
out this,  it  is  impossible  to  form  an  accurate  estimate 
of  the  real  state  of  the  College.  I  have  only  to  say 
that  the  Faculty  have  been  highly  gratified  with  the 
conduct  and  proficiency  of  the  students.  I  have  spent 
nearly  thirty  years  in  College  business,  and  I  can  say 
with  truth,  that  I  never  knew  an  instance  in  which  a 
College  was  conducted  with  such  order,  peace  and 
industry,  as  this  has  been  during  the  last  year.  We 
have  had  no  difficulty,  except  in  a  few  cases,  from  the 
resort  of  certain  individuals  to  taverns  and  other  places 
of  entertainment."  It  is  to  be  remarked  that,  even  in 
this  community  which,  in  the  extract  just  given,  is 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  89 

presented  for  our  admiration  the  degrading  vice — the 
vice  of  drunkenness — still  lingered ;  and  that  the  only 
stain  upon  the  beautiful  picture  is  produced  by  its 
foul  and  polluting  touch. 

The  year  1817  exhibits  a  decline  in  the  order  and 
quiet,  and  amount  of  study  and  proficiency  in  the 
College.  Woi*se  years,  however,  had  preceded  it.  It 
had,  however,  a  character  of  its  own,  and  I  will 
attempt  to  give  briefly  its  prominent  features.  The 
most  prominent,  perhaps,  is  the  deep  disaffection  to- 
wards the  Commons  Hall.  This  had  never  been  a 
popular  branch  of  the  College  system,  and  the  mur- 
murings  of  discontent  may  be  traced  back  to  the  earlier 
periods  of  its  existence.  It  had  always  been  a  source 
of  trouble  and  mischief;  but  now  it  became  odious. 
Complaint  after  complaint  was  made  to  the  Faculty; 
personal  collisions,  between  the  Steward  and  his 
servants,  and  the  young  men,  were  of  frequent  occur- 
rence, and  a  state  of  permanent  irritation  was  pro- 
duced. Much  of  the  time  of  the  Faculty  was  devoted 
to  an  investigation  of  the  state  of  the  Commons,  and 
to  a  trial  of  the  issues  between  the  parties.  The 
mischief  produced  by  such  a  condition  of  things  is  not 
to  be  measured  by  definite  limits.  Though  first 
directed  against  the  Hall,  soon  other  issues  are 
involved,  and  it  becomes  wide-spread  and  general. 
Every  one  who  has  had  experience  in  College  life 
knows  that  it  cannot  be  otherwise.  When  the  spirit 
of  opposition  to  authority  is  once  aroused  and  excited 
into  action,  if  not  duly  checked,  it  runs  to  madness 
and  fury,  and  there  is  nothing  too  daring,  nothing  too 
reckless,  which  it  will  not  undertake.  The  difficulties 


90  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

in  the  Commons  then  created  gther  difficulties.  The 
play  at  fisticuff  was  revived,  and  became  quite  a 
fashionable  amusement.  But  it  was  not  as  innocent 
as  in  former  times,  for  in  some  cases  it  was  a  play 
with  knives  and  dirks.  The  Faculty  were  compelled  to 
interfere  to  arrest  it,  and  the  punishment  of  suspension 
was  enforced  against  several  offenders.  As  another 
characteristic  of  the  year,  I  have  to  remark  that  the 
horn  or  trumpet  was  the  favorite  musical  instrument ! 
To  be  serious — the  quiet  of  the  College  was  much 
disturbed  by  it,  and  the  records  of  the  Faculty  furnish 
very  voluminous  reports  of  the  trial  of  offenders. 
But  the  highest  crime  of  the  year,  and  the  highest 
crime  known  to  the  law,  was  perpetrated  near  its 
close;  I  mean  the  crime  of  combination.  But  to  the 
credit  of  the  Faculty  be  it  said,  that  they  met  it 
promptly  and  boldly;  and  to  the  credit  of  the  students 
let  it  be  added,  that  they  returned  to  their  duty.  Thus 
was  it  proved  that  the  law  was  supreme,  and  that 
the  spirit  of  obedience  had  its  rightful  place  in  their 
bosoms. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Trustees  on  November  25th, 
Mr.  Herbemont  resigned  his  office  of  Tutor  of  the 
French  language,  whereupon  the  Tutorship  was 
abolished,  and  a  Professorship  established  with  a 
salary  of  twelve  hundred  dollars,  provided  the  Legis- 
lature would  make  the  appropriation.  At  the  same 
meeting  a  Professorship  of  Mineralogy  was  established 
and  annexed  to  the  Professorship  of  Chemistry,  with  a 
salary  of  four  hundred  dollars,  to  be  paid^out  of  the 
tuition  fund.  The  Legislature  had  previously  made 
an  appropriation  for  an  additional  Tutor,  and  on  De- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  91 

cember  23d,  James  Camak,  Esq.,  was  appointed  pro 
tempore.  It  is  to  be  remarked  that  Dr.  Maxcy  was 
generally  absent  from  the  meetings  of  the  Faculty. 
His  health  was  gradually  declining,  and  it  was  mani- 
fest that  the  College  would  soon  be  deprived  of  his 
invaluable  services. 


CHAPTER  IY. 

The  proceedings  of  the  Faculty  for  the  year  1818 
contain  nothing  of  peculiar  interest.  If  remarkable 
for  any  thing,  it  is  for  the  vigilance  of  the  Faculty, 
and  the  sternness  with  which  the  laws  were  enforced. 
There  were  few  or  no  offences  of  a  grave  character, 
but  yet  the  suspensions  and  degradations  were  numer- 
ous. The  rule  in  reference  to  absence  from  rooms 
after  the  ringing  of  the  bell  at  night,  was  carried  out 
with  vigor,  and  deficiency  at  the  examinations  rarely 
failed  of  receiving  its  proper  reward.  The  discipline 
then  was  good.  The  Faculty  speak  well  of  the  ex- 
aminations wrhich  were  held  during  the  year,  and  upon 
the  whole  the  success  was  decidedly  flattering. 
Seldom  is  the  temper  of  the  students  as  good  as  it  was 
at  this  period;  very  seldom,  indeed,  is  the  spirit  of 
obedience  as  perfect.  One  or  two  facts  will  exhibit 
this;  and  many  will  feel  surprised  at  the  submission 
of  the  young  men  to  certain  proceedings  of  the  Faculty. 
I  read  on  the  record  that  two  students  were  convicted 
of  an  offence,  and  that  they  participated  equally  in  it ; 
and  that  one  was  admonished,  and  the  other  suspended. 
Here  was  apparent  injustice  and  favoritism;  but 
there  was  no  protest,  no  complaint.  Again,  a  monitor 
of  the  Junior  Class  was  deposed,  and  another  appointed 
in  his  stead ;  the  appointment  was  promptly  accepted. 
I  could  multiply  examples.  Was  this  degrading  sub- 
mission ?  No.  There  were  in  the  walls  at  that  time 
6 


94  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

men  of  as  high  spirit,  and  of  as  honorable  impulses, 
as  ever  lived.  They  submitted  from  a  principle  of 
obedience  to  authority,  and  from  the  confidence  which 
they  reposed  in  the  honor  and  justice  of  the  Faculty. 
Let  the  youth  of  after-times  profit  by  the  lesson  ;  let 
them  know  that  the  Faculty  of  a  College  have  no  mo- 
tives to  be  unjust,  and  that  very  rarely,  indeed,  do  they 
perpetrate  a  wrong.  The  impulses  of  youth  are  fre- 
quently fatal  to  a  just  judgment,  and  the  precipitancy 
with  which  they  pass  upon  the  conclusions  of  matured 
minds  which  have  been  reached  after  deliberate  inves- 
tigation, and  calm  inquiry,  must  be  condemned. 

I  have  already  said,  that  from  the  earliest  years  of 
the  College,  the  Commons  Hall  had  been  a  source  of  dis- 
content ;  and  though  in  the  present  year  there  had 
been  no  violent  outbursts  against  it,  it  lost  none  of  its 
unpopularity.  I  may  as  well  add  in  this  place  as  in 
any  other,  that  it  was  never  destined  to  enjoy  the 
favor  of  the  students,  but  through  every  administra- 
tion, to  its  final  overthrow,  to  exert  an  influence 
prejudicial  to  good  manners,  and  to  the  order  and 
government  of  the  College.  At  the  first  meeting  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees,  it  was  the  principal  object  of 
attention.  It  was  resolved  to  advertise  for  a  steward, 
and  a  Special  Committee  was  appointed  to  make  the 
selection. 

Mr.  Camak's  letter  of  resignation  of  the  office  of 
Tutor,  to  which  he  had  been  recently  elected,  was 
submitted  November  25th.  The  Rev.  Robert  Henry, 
of  Charleston,  was  elected  Professor  of  Logic  and 
Moral  Philosophy,  November  26th,  in  place  of  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Montgomery,  resigned.  Hugh  McMillan 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  95 

was  elected  December  4th,  to  fill  the  vacant  Tutorship. 
There  is  nothing  else  of  interest  in  the  proceedings  of 
the  Board  for  this  year.  Its  authority  seems  not  to 
have  been  invoked  for  any  matter  of  discipline,  or  for 
any  other  purpose,  and  all  things  promised  well  for 
the  coming  session  of  1819. 

The  Rev.  B.  R.  Montgomery  was  born  in  Abbeville 
District,  South  Carolina,  about  the  year  1782.  His 
academic  education  was  conducted  solely  by  his 
mother;  and  I  am  informed  that  she  prepared  him 
for  admission  to  Hamden  and  Sidney  College,  where 
he  was  received  in  1799.  He  entered  the  ministry  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  in  1803.  I  know  not  the 
field  of  his  ministerial  labors  before  his  call  to  the 
Presbyterian  Church  in  Camden.  At  a  meeting  of 
the  congregation  of  that  church,  October  10th,  1809, 
he  was  unanimously  invited  to  take  charge  of  it ;  and 
his  first  official  act  bears  date  February  9th,  1810. 
He  held  this  responsible  position  but  a  short  time.  In 
a  letter  now  before  me,  I  am  assured  that  never  was 
a  separation  between  a  Pastor  and  his  people  more 
trying.  Nothing  but  the  importance  of  uniting  the 
pastoral  relation  of  the  young  and  feeble  church  at 
Columbia  with  the  Professor's  chair  in  College,  could 
have  induced  him  to  relinquish  his  connection  with 
the  church  at  Camden.  He  has  often  been  heard  to 
say,  that  the  most  sorrowful  day  of  his  life  was  when 
he  left  Camden.  His  farewell  sermon  was  preached 
from  2d  Corinthians,  13th  chapter,  16th  verse.  One 
who  heard  it  writes,  that  "  it  was  an  occasion  never 
to  be  forgotten  by  those  who  were  present.  There 
was  not  a  tearless  eye  in  thfc  church,  and  many  irre- 


96  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

pressible  bursts  of  sorrow  testified  the  love  and  attach- 
ment which  were  now  about  to  be  dissolved  between 
a  beloved  pastor  and  his  people."  At  the  meeting  of 
the  Trustees,  November  27th,  1811,  he  was  elected 
Professor  of  Moral  Philosophy  and  Logic,  and  Novem- 
ber 26th,  1818,  resigned  his  office.  Dr.  Montgomery 
was  an  officer  in  the  College  for  seven  years,  and 
never  was  it  the  lot  of  one  to  pass  through  a  more 
stormy  period.  He  is  commended  by  the  Trustees 
for  the  manner  in  which  he  discharged  his  duties.  I 
am  assured  by  distinguished  graduates  of  that  day, 
that  he  was  "  a  good  Professor."  I  have  no  means  of 
judging  of  the  particular  character  of  his  mind  and 
literary  attainments.  I  am  not  aware  that  he  pub- 
lished any  thing.  He  is  to  be  remembered,  however, 
for  his  long  services  in  the  College  at  the  period  of  its 
infancy,  and  as  having  contributed  no  small  share  to 
its  advancement.  He  died  at  Key- West,  August  27th, 
1823. 

The  order  of  the  year  1819  was  not  as  good  as  that 
of  the  year  just  passed.*  The  complaints  against  the 
Commons  were  loud  and  numerous,  and  the  Faculty 
were  obliged  to  direct  their  special  attention  to  the 
subject.  There  were  not  a  few  offences,  but  they 
were  all  met  by  the  appropriate  punishment.  It  is 
gratifying  to  record  that  in  some  of  a  personal  char- 
acter, the  offenders  were  required  by  the  Faculty  to 
make  full  and  satisfactory  apologies,  and  that  it  was 
promptly  done.  The  fact  proves  the  good  temper  of 
the  students,  and  their  respect  for  authority. 

The  most  interesting  event  of  the  year  is  the  death 
of  Professor  Smith.  He  "was  born  in  Charleston  in 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  97 

July,  1778.  He  was  the  third  son  of  Josiah  and  Mary 
Smith,  of  that  city.  The  rudiments  of  his  education 
were  received  in  Philadelphia,  to  which  place  his 
mother  was  driven  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  He 
returned  to  Charleston  when  very  young,  and  entered 
an  Academy  conducted  by  a  Mr.  Thompson.  His 
progress  in  his  studies  was  very  rapid,  and  at  the  age 
of  thirteen  he  was  thought  sufficiently  prepared  for 
admission  to  Princeton  College.  This  was  postponed, 
however,  on  account  of  his  youth,  but  at  the  age  of 
fourteen  he  went  on  under  charge  of  a  Mr.  Baldwin,  a 
Tutor  in  the  Academy,  who  had  been  appointed  to  a 
Tutorship  in  that  College,  and  entered  the  Freshman 
Class.  Graduating  with  high  distinction,  he  returned 
to  his  parents  in  Charleston,  and  commenced  the  study 
of  medicine  in  the  office  of  Dr.  David  Ramsay.  He 
attended  the  medical  lectures  of  the  University  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  after  having  received  his  degree  of 
Doctor  of  Medicine,  settled  in  his  native  city,  and  en- 
tered upon  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  connection 
with  Drs.  Stevens  and  Joseph  Ramsay.  There  he 
remained  until  1807,  when  he  removed  to  the  upper 
part  of  the  State,  and  purchased  a  home  in  Pendleton 
District.  For  six  years  he  pursued  the  quiet  occupa- 
tion of  a  planter,  and  practised  his  profession  only 
when  his  services  were  imperiously  demanded.  At 
this  period  he  connected  himself  with  the  Presbyterian 
Church.  The  Chair  of  Chemistry  being  now  vacant 
by  the  lamented  death  of  Professor  Simons,  at  the 
earnest  solicitation  of  his  friends  he  was  induced  to 
offer  himself  as  a  candidate.  He  was  elected  to  that 
Chair  November  26th,  1812,  and  entered  upon  its 


98  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

duties  on  the  following  January.  No  doubt  it  was 
the  best  appointment  which  could  have  been  made. 
In  that  day  the  number  of  professional  chemists 
was  very  limited,  and  at  the  South  few  were  to 
be  found.  His  course  of  medical  studies  had,  however, 
secured  some  attention  to  that  department,  and  he  was 
not,  therefore,  wanting  in  special  preparation.  Pie  had, 
too,  great  taste  for  it ;  and  with  his  fine  understand- 
ing and  persevering  industry,  it  was  certain  that  time 
only  was  necessary  for  the  achievement  of  large  suc- 
cess. Dr.  Maxcy,  in  his  report  to  the  Trustees  of 
November  24th,  1813,  testifies  that  he  has  discharged 
his  duties  with  great  assiduity;  that  he  has  carried 
the  Senior  Class  through  a  pretty  extensive  course  of 
Chemistry,  and  that  it  appeared  to  great  advantage  at 
the  Public  Examination.  The  report  of  the  President 
of  November,  1816,  declares  that  his  lectures  upon 
Chemistry  have  been  regularly  delivered,  and  illus- 
trated by  appropriate  experiments ;  that  his  public 
examinations  have  been  accurate  and  extensive,  and 
fully  evinced  his  industry  and  success  in  instruction. 
In  1817,  the  language  of  the  President  is  of  the  most 
earnest  and  flattering  character.  He  says  that  his  exer- 
tions are  indefatigable,  and  that  there  are  but  few  Profes- 
sors in  this  country  who  can  bear  a  comparison  with  him. 
In  1818  he  gives  similar  testimony.  He  continued  "to 
discharge  the  duties  of  his  Professorship  with  unabated 
zeal  until  the  Summer  vacation  of  1819.  Of  his  extra- 
ordinary industry,  his  wonderful  diligence,  the  records 
of  the  Faculty  and  the  Board  of  Trustees  bear  abundant 
testimony.  He  was  the  man  of  work  in  the  body  of 
which  he  was  a  member.  I  say  nothing  of  his  zeal  in 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.  99 

his  particular  department ;  I  am  willing  to  believe 
that  all  his  colleagues  were  animated  by  the  same 
honorable  spirit.  His  labors  are  not  to  be  measured 
alone  by  the  limit  of  his  professorial  duties.  He  was 
the  Secretary  of  the  Faculty  from  November,  1813, 
until  the  period  of  his  death ;  and  his  records  are 
remarkably  full,  voluminous  and  complete.  When- 
ever any  extra  professorial  services  had  to  be  performed, 
he  was  called  upon  to  di§charge  them.  He  was  prom- 
inent on  the  Committees  of  the  Faculty.  If  the 
Commons  Hall  needed  supervision  and  regulation,  he 
was  looked  to  for  the  purpose ;  if  a  Bursar  had  to  be 
appointed  to  receive  from  parents  the  money  for  their 
sons,  and  disburse  it  for  them,  he  had  the  troublesome 
and  thankless  duty  devolved  upon  him.  He  loved 
the  College  with  the  sincerest  devotion,  and  was  ever 
ready  to  do  anything  which  by  possibility  could  sub- 
serve its  interests.  Full  of  this  spirit,  and  industrious 
and  methodical  in  his  habits,  he  could  always  find 
time  when  his  services  were  commanded.  'Such  was 
the  man,  such  was  the  officer  whose  death  I  am  called 
upon  to  record.  Who  shall  estimate  his  value  ?  w^ho 
shall  measure  the  loss  which  the  College  and  the 
State  were  now  called  upon  to  sustain  !  In  July, 
1819,  he  left  Columbia  in  company  with  his  friend, 
Mr.  David  Coulter,  for  the  Far  West.  He  was 
.attacked  with  fever,  and  died  at  his  friend's  house  in 
Missouri,  in  the  month  of  August  of  that  year.  He 
breathed  his  last  afar  from  the  wife  and  children  of 
his  bosom,  and  his  body  is  interred  in  that  distant 
land.  He  died  in  the  fullness  of  his  strength,  in  the 
maturity  of  his  powers,  and  a  deep  and  heart-felt 


100        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

sorrow  was  awakened  throughout  South  Carolina. 
At  the  first  meeting  of  the  Faculty,  on  the  4th  of 
October  ensuing,  the  following  resolutions  were  sub- 
mitted by  Dr.  Maxcy,  and  unanimously  adopted  : 

Resolved,  That  the  President,  Professors  and  Tutors 
of  this  College,  do  wear  crape  upon  the  left  arm  for 
the  space  of  thirty  days,  as  a  testimony  of  their 
respect  for  the  memory  of  their  lamented  colleague, 
Edward  Barrel  Smith,  M.  D.,  late  Professor  of  Chem- 
istry and  Mineralogy  in  the  College. 

Resolved,  That  it  be  recommended  to  the  students 
of  the  College  to  pay  a  like  tribute  of  respect  to  the 
memory  of  Professor  Smith. 

Resolved,  That  Professor  Henry  be  requested  to 
deliver  a  discourse  commemorative  of  the  character 
and  virtues  of  the  deceased  Professor,  at  the  ensuing 
Commencement  of  the  College. 

Resolved,  That  these  Resolutions  be  read  in  the  Col- 
lege Chapel  by  the  President,  and  that  a  copy  of  them 
be  transmitted  by  the  Secretary  to  Mrs.  Smith. 

It  was  then  agreed  that  the  business  of  the  College 
should  be  suspended  until  the  morrow. 

The  Board  of  Trustees,  at  their  meeting  of  Decem- 
ber 3d,  express  their  deep  sense  of  the  loss  which  they 
have  sustained  in  the  death  of  Professor  Smith,  and  of 
the  eminent  services  which  he  rendered  while  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Faculty. 

From  some  unknown  cause,  Professor  Henry  did 
not  deliver  his  discourse  until  more  than  three  years 
had  elapsed  from  the  period  of  his  death.  I  beg  leave 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        101 

now,  in  conclusion,  to  make  a  brief  reference  to  it. 
As  he  was  his  colleague,  and  knew  him  well,  and  was 
possessed  of  the  fullest  competency  for  the  exercise 
of  a  discriminating  judgment,  I  will  avail  myself  of 
his  testimony,  while  I  attempt  in  a  few  words  to  give 
a  summary  of  his  intellectual  and  moral  character. 
From  what  has  already  been  said,  the  reader  is  pre- 
pared to  accord  to  him,  as  a  striking  feature  of  his  mind, 
uan  unshaken  perseverance  in  the  prosecution  of  any 
object  which  he  had  once  seriously  proposed  to  him- 
self as  useful  or  laudable."  His  memory  was  very 
retentive,  and  he  was  thereby  able  to  avail  himself,  to 
the  utmost  extent,  of  the  stores  of  others  ;  and  yet  he 
was  not  wanting  in  the  power  of  invention  when  he 
thought  proper  to  exercise  it.  He  ranked  well  as  a 
man  of  science,  and  his  acquisitions  were  not  confined 
to  his  department.  He  was  a  good  scholar,  and  Dr. 
Maxcy  incidentally  records  in  one  of  his  reports,  that 
he  possessed  what  might  be  regarded  as  a  rare  accom- 
plishment in  that  day,  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the 
French  language.  His  mind  was  remarkable  for  its 
exactness,  and  he  was  never  content  with  a  loose  and 
imperfect  acquaintance  with  any  thing.  He  was  careful, 
therefore,  in  his  pursuits,  and  attained  to  great  accuracy. 
His  morality  was  pure,  his  Christian  faith  firm  and 
unwavering.  His  temper  was  happy  and  amiable,  and 
in  his  social  and  domestic  relations  he  presented  an 
example  of  shining  excellence.  In  a  word,  he  was  a 
godly  man,  whose  conduct  was  regulated  by  deeply 
cherished  principle,  and  death  only  set  its  seal  to  a  life 
adorned  by  all  the  virtues,  and  sanctified  by  all  the 
influences  which  give  dignity  to  human  nature. 


102        HISTORY  OF  TUB  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

To  complete  the  history  of  the  year,  I  must  again 
recur  to  the  proceedings  of  the  Board  of  Trustees. 
For  many  years  past  there  had  been  three  examina- 
tions of  the  three  under  classes.  It  was  now  deter- 
mined that  there  should  be  but  two.  The  first  was  • 
fixed  on  the  last  week  of  the  College  Session,  and  the 
second  on  the  week  preceding  the  Commencement. 
The  final  examination  of  the  Senior  class  was  ordered 
to  commence  five  weeks  before  the  Commencement. 
Let  me  now  say  to  the  reader,  that  at  the  present  time 
there  are  three  examinations  of  the  under  classes. 
He  will  perceive  it  is  nothing  new,  but  a  re- 
vival of  an  ancient  usage  in  the  College.  There  had 
been  in  some  sense  an  independent  Professorship  of 
Mineralogy,  but  now  the  duties  were  assigned  to  the 
Professor  of  Chemistry,  and  the  salary  of  the  professor- 
ship was  abolished.  At  the  meeting  of  December  3d, 
Professor  Hanckel  resigned  his  Professorship,  to  take 
effect  in  twelve  months.  It  was  resolved  to  go  into 
an  election  to  fill  the  vacant  Professorship  of  Chemis- 
try for  the  term  of  one  year,  and  Dr.  Thomas  Cooper, 
of  Philadelphia,  was  elected.  At  the  same  meeting- 
Timothy  Dwight  Porter  was  elected  Tutor.  I  have 
now  reached  the  close  of  the  year  1819.  One  or  two 
reflections  may  not  be  out  of  place.  It  was  not  a  year 
of  great  disorder ;  the  Faculty  speak  well  of  the 
examination  with  which  it  was  concluded.  It  was,  as 
has  been  seen,  the  year  of  the  death  of  a  most  valu- 
able officer,  and  of  the  resignation  of  another.  It  was 
the  year,  too,  of  the  election  of  a  man  of  great  genius 
and  learning,  who  was  to  fill  the  chair  of  the  Presi- 
dency, whose  influence  was  deep  and  abiding,  and  who 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        103 

was  to  share  alike  the  admiration  and  reproach  of  the 
Trustees,  and  people  of  South  Carolina.  And  it  is  the 
last  year,  too,  of  the  gifted  Maxcy — of  that  great  man 
who  had  been  with  the  College  from  its  very  com- 
mencement ;  whose  genius  had  contributed  largely  to 
give  it  form  and  shape,  and  whose  knowledge  and 
power  had  aided  so  much  in  its  progress  and  develop- 
ment. 

The  sad  year  of  1820  is  upon  me,  and  I  proceed  to 
sketch  its  history.  The  first  few  months  of  the 
session  were  marked  by  several  acts  of  disorder,  but 
generally  of  such  a  character  as  not  to  be  worthy  of 
special  mention.  The  most  flagrant  violation  of  law 
was  the  occurrence  of  a  riot  in  the  town,  of  such 
importance  as  to  require  the  interposition  of  the 
Faculty,  and  a  correspondence  with  the  local  authori- 
ties. It  seems,  however,  to  have  been  confined  to 
very  few,  and  not  to  have  disturbed  the  general  order 
of  the  College.  Two  or  three  suspensions  occurred  in 
the  course  of  the  Spring.  At  the  meeting  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  April  28th,  resolutions  were 
passed  highly  approving  the  services  of  Dr.  Cooper, 
and  expressing  the  unanimous  desire  that  he  accept 
his  Professorship  permanently;  and  a  committee  was 
appointed  to  confer  with  him  in  reference  to  the 
matter,  and  to  ascertain  what  Professorship  can  be 
most  advantageously  united  with  that  of  Chemistry. 
At  a  subsequent  meeting  the  committee  reported  that 
Dr.  Cooper  had  consented,  and  it  was  resolved  unani- 
mously that  application  be  made  to  the  Legislature, 
at  its  next  session,  to  establish  a  Professorship  of 
Geology  and  Mineralogy,  with  a  salary  of  one  thousand 


104        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

dollars  per  annum,  and  that  the  said  Professorship  be 
committed  to  the  charge  of  the  Professor  of  Chemistry. 
The  health  of  Dr.  Maxcy  was  failing  rapidly ;  but,  bad 
as  it  was,  the  minutes  of  the  Faculty  bear  testimony 
that  he  was  rarely  absent  from  its  meetings,  and  that 
he  bore  his  part  in  the  business  of  the  College.  At 
this  meeting  the  following  resolution  was  submitted, 
and  its  consideration  postponed  to  a  future  day.  This 
postponement  is  to  be  regretted,  and  yet  I  would  cast 
no  imputation  upon  the  good  and  great  men  who 
thus  disposed  of  it.  Had  they  known  that  it  was  a 
pressing  emergency,  that  they  were  looking  at  him  for 
the  last  time,  that  the  shadows  of  death  were  even 
now  upon  him,  and  that  in  one  short  month  he  was 
to  be  forever  concealed  from  their  view,  I  am  sure 
that  there  was  no  kindness  which  they  would  not 
readily  have  granted,  no  sacrifice  which  they  would 
not  willingly  have  made.  The  resolution  reads  thus : 

Whereas,  The  President  of  this  College  has  been  for 
many  years  engaged  in  the  arduous  and  laborious  duties 
of  his  station,  and  has  been  worn  down,  and  exhausted 
his  constitution  in  the  successful  diffusion  of  science 
and  literature,  and  in  forming  the  mind  of  youth  for 
philosophical  researches : 

Resolved,  That  it  is  expedient  to  devise  some  mea- 
sure to  relieve  him  from  part  of  the  burden  incident  to 
the  administrative  part  of  his  duty. 

The  Board  adjourned  not  to  meet  until  the  29th  of 
November.  Dr.  Maxcy  continued  to  attend  the  meet- 
ings of  the  Faculty  regularly,  and  met  his  colleagues 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH 'CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        105 

for  the  last  time  on  the  30th  of  May.     He  expired  on 
the  4th  of  June. 

I  have  before  me  a  "Circular  of  the  South  Carolina 
College,"  bearing  date  April,  1819,  and  signed  "Jona- 
than Maxcy."  I  think  it  worthy  of  being  laid  before 
the  reader,  as  in  the  language  of  the  Circular,  "  it  gives 
a  correct  view  of  the  Course  of  Studies  pursued  in  the 
College,  and  of  the  advantages  which  it  offers  for 
acquiring  information  in  the  various  branches  of 
science."  It  is  an  important  era  in  its  history.  The 
first  President  was  soon  to  rest  from  his  labors.  He 
was  with  the  College  from  its  commencement.  In 
the  process  of  development,  it  had  encountered  the 
severest  trials  and  difficulties'.  He  had  expended 
all  his  talent  and  learning  in  the  work  of  progress ; 
he  had  worn  himself  out  in  its  service ;  he  had 
nursed  it  with  parental  solicitude.  What  was  the 
result  of  all  this  toil,  of  all  this  anxiety  ?  What 
point  had  it  reached  ? — what  standard  of  education  had 
he  erected?  This  will  be  best  answered  by  the 
Circular,  and  I  beg  leave  to  give  it  entire  : 

"  In  order  to  enter  the  Freshman  Class  at  its  forma- 
tion, a  candidate  must  be  able  to  sustain  a  satisfactory 
examination  upon  Arithmetic  and  English  Grammar, 
upon  Cornelius  Nepos,  Caesar,  Sallust  and  the  whole 
of  Virgil's  ^Eneid  in  Latin  ;  and  in  Greek,  upon  the 
Gospels  of  St.  John  and  Luke,  and  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles.  The  studies  to  be  pursued  in  the  Fresh- 
man year  are  Cicero's  Orations,  and  the  Odes  of 
Horace  in  Latin,  Xenophon's  Cyropsedia  in  Greek, 
Vulgar  and  Decimal  Fractions  and  Extraction  of 
Koots,  English  Grammar  and  Adam's  Roman  Antiqui- 


106        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

ties.  In  the  Sophomore  year  the  studies  are,  Horace 
continued,  Homer's  Iliad  in  Greek,  Geography,  Sheri- 
dan's Lectures  on  Elocution,  and  Algebra ;  Exercises 
in  Composition  and  Speaking  are  also  required.  In  the 
Junior  year  the  studies  are,  Blair's  Lectures,  and 
Kames'  Elements  of  Criticism,  Logic,  Moral  Philoso- 
phy, Paley's  Evidences  of  Christianity,  Hutton's  Course 
of  Mathematics,  and  Exercises  in  Composition  and 
Speaking.  In  the  Senior  year  the  studies  are,  Meta- 
physics, Moral  Philosophy  continued,  Butler's  Analogy, 
Hutton's  Course  of  Mathematics  continued,  Cavallo's 
Mechanical  Philosophy  and  Astronomy,  Chemistry 
and  Mineralogy.  Exercises  in  Composition  and  Speak- 
ing are  also  required.  The  Professors  of  Mathematics, 
Mechanical  Philosophy  and  Astronomy,  of  Logic  and 
Moral  Philosophy,  of  Chemistry  and  Mineralogy, 
deliver  lectures  on  the  suojects  connected  with  their 
respective  departments.  The  Institution  possesses  an 
excellent  and  extensive  philosophical  apparatus? 
which  is  well  suited  to  illustrate  the  lectures  on  the 
various  branches  of  experimental  science.  •  I  may 
add  that,  at  this  time,  the  officers  of  the  College  con- 
sisted of  a  President,  four  Professors  and  two  Tutors. 

It  must  be  stated,  that  it  was  determined  that  after 
the  termination  of  the  year,  the  Analecta  Graeca 
Majora  and  Minora,  were  to  be  introduced,  and  the  two 
higher  Classes  required  to  have  a  weekly  recitation  in 
these  books,  and  in  Cicero  de  Oratore. 


CHAPTER  V. 

I  have  said  that  we  have  reached  an  era  in  the 
history  of  the  College.  The  great  man  who  so  long 
presided  over  its  destinies  is  now  no  more.  Though 
I  have  had  frequent  occasion  to  refer  to  him  in  these 
pages,  and  my  readers  are  not  strangers  to  him,  it  is 
but  a  simple  act  of  justice  that  I  speak  more  particu- 
larly, and  endeavor  to  present  a  fuller  idea  of  the  man 
and  the  officer.  The  following  sketch  is,  therefore, 
submitted.  I  feel  embarrassed  by  the  magnitude  of 
my  subject.  I  have  before  me  a  letter  from  one  of  the 
most  distinguished  men  of  the  State,  who  wields  a  pen 
remarkable  for  its  bold  and  graphic  delineations,  and 
in  it  he  remarks  that  he  has  often  tried  to  describe 
Dr.  Maxcy,  but  fears  that  he  has  always  failed.  It 
is  not  to  be  wondered  at  after  such  a  confession,  that  I 
should  distrust  my  own  abilities.  To  the  numerous 
admirers  of  that  great  man,  I  have  but  to  say  that  I 
trust  they  will  accept  it  with  all  its  imperfections,  as 
a  pure  and  heartfelt  offering  upon  his  shrine. 

Jonathan  Maxcy,  D.D.,  was  born  in  Attleborough, 
Massachusetts,  September  2,  1768.  His  grandfather 
was  for  many  years  a  member  of  the  Colonial  Legisla- 
ture of  Massachusetts,  and  his  father  was  one  of  the 
most  respectable  inhabitants  of  the  town  in  which  he 
lived.  He  had  that  good  fortune  which  is  so  often 
accorded  to  the  truly  great  men  of  earth,  of  having  as 
his  mother  a  woman  of  strong  mind  and  devoted 


108        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

piety,  and  of  coming  under  her  peculiar  guidance  and 
instruction.  At  an  early  age  he  gave  proof  of  extra- 
ordinary talents,  and  particularly  in  extemporaneous 
speaking.  He  was  entered  a  student  in  the  Academy 
at  Wrentham,  Massachusetts,  conducted  by  the  Rev. 
William  Williams.  At  the  age  of  fifteen  he  was 
admitted  into  Brown  University.  The  talents  which 
were  so  prominently  displayed  at  home,  and  at  the 
Academy,  rapidly  ripened  and  expanded  on  this  new 
and  wider  theatre,  and  he  was  distinguished  in  the 
University  for  the  brilliancy  of  his  intellect,  the  ur- 
banity of  his  manners,  the  correctness  of  his  deportment, 
his  devotion  to  study,  and  honorable  ambition.  He 
graduated  in  1787  with  the  highest  honors  of  his 
class,  and  delivered  a  poem  on  the  occasion.  Immedi- 
ately afterwards  he  was  appointed  to  a  vacant  Tutor- 
ship, the  duties  of  which  ne  discharged  for  four  years 
with  great  ability.  Becoming  the  subject  of  religious 
impressions,  he  left  the  University  and  was  ordained 
Pastor  of  the  first  Baptist  Church  in  Providence,  Sep- 
tember 8th,  1791.  Here  he  labored  with  great  suc- 
cess, and  added  largely  to  his  reputation.  President 
Manning  died  suddenly  in  July,  1791,  and  at  the 
Annual  Commencement  of  the  next  year,  Dr.  Maxcy 
was  unanimously  elected  his  successor,  and  resigning 
his  pastorship,  entered  upon  theMuties  of  the  Presi- 
dential Chair  September  8,  1792.  He  was  not 
unknown :  as  student  and  tutor  he  had  left  behind 
him  a  high  fame,  and  his  re-appearance  awakened 
universal  joy.  At  the  first  commencement  after  his 
inauguration,  the  College  was  illuminated,  and  a  trans- 
parency placed  in  the  attic  story,  displaying  his  name 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        109 

with :  "President  24  years  old."  Nor  did  he  disap- 
point the  public  expectation.  The  College  had  the 
largest  success  under  his  administration ;  and  on  the 
roll  of  bright  names  which  adorn  the  Presidency  of 
that  Institution,  to  this  day  none  shine  with  brighter 
and  more  enduring  lustre  than  that  of  Jonathan 
Maxcy.  In  1802,  upon  the  death  of  Dr.  Jonathan 
Edwards,  President  of  Union  College,  Schenectady, 
New  York,  he  was  elected  to  the  Presidency  of  that 
Institution.  Here  he  remained  for  two  years,  and  won 
golden  opinions  from  all.  The  Act  establishing  the 
South  Carolina  College  was  passed  in  1801,  and  in 
1804  the  Trustees  determined  to  put  the  College  in 
operation  the  succeeding  year.  To  this  end  a  Presi- 
dent was  to  be  elected,  and  all  eyes  were  turned  to 
Maxcy,  who  had  filled  the  Presidencies  of  two  Colleges, 
and  whose  genius  and  learning  had  attracted  the  admi- 
ration of  the  entire  country.  He  was  therefore  elected 
April  28,  1804,  and  required  to  be  at  Columbia  by 
the  succeeding  November.  His  health  was  feeble,  and 
he  accepted  the  call  in  the  hope  that  he  would  find  a 
climate  more  congenial  to  his  constitution.  The  reader 
will  call  to  mind  that  he  has  been  the  prominent 
personage  in  my  historical  narrative,  from  the  year 
of  his  election  to  the  period  of  his  death.  He  has 
been  the  principal  actor.  The  history  of  the  College 
thus  far  is  so  interwoven  with  his  own  personal  history, 
that  they  cannot  be  separated.  I  have  been  com- 
pelled, therefore,  to  speak  of  him  on  almost  every 
page ;  to  declare,  to  a  considerable  extent,  the  nature 
of  his  labors,  and  the  value  of  his  varied  services.  I 
shall  not  repeat  the  story  here;  the  College  is  his 
7 


110        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

monument,  and  his  name  is  inscribed  on  every  page 
of  its  history.  His  acts,  then,  have  been  given,  and 
his  mighty  influence  asserted.  But  I  am  to  speak  of 
the  man  more  particularly;  to  undertake  an  analysis 
of  his  character,  to  present  him,  if  possible,  in  the 
fullness  of  his  moral  and  intellectual  grandeur,  and 
unveil,  if  I  can,  the  sources  of  that  almost  super- 
human power  which  affected  alike  the  young  and  the 
old,  the  educated  and  the  ignorant. 

First,  I  will  speak  of  his  person.  None  will  deny 
that  it  is  something  to  be  fortunate  in  this  respect. 
But  I  go  further.  The  phrase  "commanding  person" 
has  been  heard  by  all ;  it  is  then  a  power.  He  was 
rather  small  of  stature.  Judge  O'Neall,  in  a  letter 
addressed  to  me,  says  that  he  was  about  five  feet 
eight  inches  high,  his  nose  aquiline,  his  forehead 
high,  his  lips  a  little  protruded,  his  hair  rather  dark. 
He  had  a  peculiar  majesty  in  his  walk.  Dressed  in 
fair  top-boots,  cane  in  hand,  and  walking  through 
the  Campus,  he  was  looked  at  with  admiration  by  the 
young  men.  When  he  entered  the  College  Chapel  for 
morning  or  evening  prayers,  every  student  was  erect 
in  his  place,  and  as  still  as  death  to  receive  him.  His 
features  were  regular  and  manly,  and  when  in  repose 
had  no  striking  expression,  unless  it  be  that  of  benevo- 
lence. But  when  he  began  to  speak,  says  the  distin- 
guished gentleman  to  whom  I  have  alluded,  even  in 
common  conversation,  the  light  of  genius  flashed  from 
his  eyes,  and  his  whole  appearance  changed.  He  was 
then  a  man — yea,  more  than  a  man  ;  he  seemed  as  if 
he  was  the  living  embodiment  of  truth  and  eloquence. 
I  must  call  the  attention  of  my  younger  readers  par- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        Ill 

ticularly,  to  what  has  been  said  about  the  manner  of 
his  reception  in  the  chapel.  Is  there  not  something 
beautiful  in  it  ?  And  is  not  such  respect  becoming 
and  proper  ?  Let  the  students  of  after-times  derive  a 
profitable  lesson  from  it.  I  think  I  know  the  history 
of  its  discontinuance,  but  let  it  be  revived.  Age, 
learning  and  piety,  are  especially  entitled  to  respect 
from  the  young,  and  he  who  withholds  it  is  certainly 
wanting  in  good  manners.  The  brief  sketch  thus 
given  of  the  person  of  Dr.  Maxcy  has  reference  to  his 
appearance  in  1811,  and  I  preferred  to  follow  the 
eminent  gentleman  to  whom  I  am  indebted,  rather 
than  trust  to  my  own  recollections  at  a  subsequent 
period.  I  saw  him  for  the  first  time  in  1819,  and 
though  then  the  subject  of  rapidly  increasing  infirmi- 
ties, I  remember  well  the  dignity  of  the  man,  the 
power  of  his  presence. 

I  will  now  call  attention  to  the  intellectual  features 
by  which  he  was  distinguished.  There  was  a  combi- 
nation of  powers  which  is  rarely  exhibited.  In  his 
mind  were  to  be  found,  in  harmonious  adjustment,  all 
the  elements  to  constitute  the  man  of  taste,  the  poet, 
the  scholar,  the  philosopher,  and  the  orator.  It  has 
been  said  that  in  the  mind  of  every  man  of  mark, 
there  is  a  predominant  feature;  a  leading  power 
which,  in  its  mightier  dominion,  holds  all  others  in 
subserviency  to  it.  If  I  had  to  distinguish  in  this 
respect,  between  the  high  and  varied  powers  with 
which  he  was  endowed,  I  would  say  that  the  original 
bent  of  his  genius  was  towards  Philosophy.  Certain 
it  is,  that  he  luxuriated  in  the  recondite  and  abstruse 
inquiries  of  Metaphysics  and  Speculative  Theology. 


112        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

He  was  familiar  with  the  dogmas  of  the  several  sys- 
tems, and  knew  well  the  principles  by  which  we  are 
to  be  guided  in  such  investigations.  It  is  true,  I  think, 
as  Dr.  Henry  asserts  in  his  eulogy  upon  him,  that  to 
the  beneficial  effects  of  those  studies  are  due  the  clear- 
ness, precision  and  facility,  with  which  he  was  enabled 
to  explain  himself  upon  every  subject  which  he  under- 
took to  discuss. 

But  he  was  not  content  with  metaphysical  attain- 
ments. His  reading  was  immense,  and  knowledge 
was  attractive  to  him  wherever  it  was  to  be  found. 
He  neglected  nothing ;  every  department  of  human 
inquiry  had  an  interest  for  him.  He  was  not  only 
not  ignorant,  but  there  were  few  subjects  on  which 
he  would  fail  to  give  a  sound  and  mature  opinion. 

His  reading  in  the  Belles  Lettres  was  extensive,  and 
he  had  mastered  everything  of  value  in  the  depart 
ment  of  polite  literature.  His  taste  was  just  and  dis- 
criminating, and  his  mind  thoroughly  imbued  with  the 
principles  of  philosophical  criticism.  While  no  man 
could  live  more  within  himself,  or  had  a  more  reflective 
intelligence,  he  had  a  sympathy  with  external  nature 
in  all  her  varied  forms,  and  could  derive  from  her  con- 
templation the  noblest  and  most  exquisite  enjoyment. 
He  was  no  recluse,  whose  world  was  measured  by  the 
narrow  boundaries  of  his  closet ;  no  half-developed 
man.  From  the  very  depth  of  the  unexplained  and 
unexplainable  mysteries  of  Philosophy;  from  the  field 
of  pure  speculation,  where  he  was  striving  with  Plato, 
to  get  a  glimpse  of  truths  which  no  human  mind  has 
been  permitted  to  penetrate,  he  could,  in  an  instant, 
divert  the  current  of  his  thoughts,  and,  plunging  in  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        113 

midst  of  nature's  scenery,  have  his  soul  elevated  to 
rapture  at  the  sight  of  a  flower,  a  tree,  a  precipice,  or 
running  brook.  And  why  was  this  ?  It  was  because 
of  the  varied  powers  of  his  mind,  the  diversified  nature 
of  his  pursuits.  It  is  worthy  of  mention  here,  as  in 
great  minds,  and  especially  in  the  student,  it  is  often 
otherwise.  Either  from  original  constitution,  or  habits 
of  thought,  the  emotions  of  such  persons  are  apt  to  be 
of  a  particular  kind,  and  restricted  to  particular  sub- 
jects. The  lover,  the  man  of  commerce,  the  tradesman, 
the  lawyer,  the  doctor,  wonder  at  the  existence  of  emo- 
tions which  are  excited  in  the  bosoms  of  others,  by  ob- 
jects which  they  regard  with  frigid  indifference.  Many 
of  my  readers  will  remember  the  story  of  the  great 
mathematician  who  read  the  Paradise  Lost  without 
being  able  to  discover  anything  sublime,  but  who 
always  had  his  hair  to  stand  on  end,  and  his  blood 
to  run  cold,  when  he  read  the  queries  at  the  end 
of  Newton's  Optics.  He  loved  the  beautiful ;  his  taste 
was  pure,  his  imagination  warm,  his  sympathies 
universal.  He  united,  then,  the  philosophical  with 
the  aesthetic  element,  and  thus  the  charm  of  poetry 
and  the  coloring  of  fancy,  were  diffused  over  his  most 
abstract  speculations. 

Dr.  Maxcy  was  not  a  scholar  in  the  sense  of  a 
thorough  and  critical  knowledge  of  the  languages  of 
antiquity.  This  is  plainly  hinted  by  Dr.  Henry  in 
his  eulogy.  But  his  scholarship  was  good,  and  he  had 
incorporated  the  spirit  and  genius  of  ancient  classical 
literature  into  his  mental  constitution.  I  am  now  to 
speak  of  him  as  an  orator,  and,  according  to  all  accounts, 
he  acknowledges  no  superior  in  this  respect  among  us. 


114        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Judged  by  the  only  true  test,  the  effect,  he  stands 
unsurpassed.  And  to  no  subject  did  he  give  a  larger 
attention.  He  made  it  a  study  ;  he  felt  that  it  had 
its  philosophy,  and  strove  to  master  its  principles, 
that  he  might  give  it  its  fullest  efficiency.  He  knew 
that  the  foundation  of  all  eloquence  was  laid  in  nature 
— that  the  appeal  must  be  to  man  as  he  is ;  that 
it  has  power  only  as  it  makes  heart  answer  to  heart, 
and  arouses  a  feeling  of  common  sympathy.  He  was 
familiar  with  the  noblest  examples  of  the  art  in  ancient 
and  in  modern  times,  and  read  with  the  eye  of  a  phi- 
losopher the  productions  which  have  given  them 
immortality,  and  strove  to  discover  the  secret  of  their 
marvellous  effects.  Let  it  not  be  supposed,  however, 
that  his  power  was  acquired.  No ;  this  is  impos- 
sible. But  it  was  improved  by  study  and  art.  Nature 
implanted  in  him  all  the  elements  of  the  orator; 
imparted  the  gift ;  but  he  cultivated  and  developed  it. 
She  bestowed  upon  him  a  noble  intellect,  a  warm  and 
fervid  imagination,  a  tender  and  sympathising  heart, 
a  sweet,  melodious  voice,  but  of  great  power,  and  a 
commanding  presence.  His  mind  was  rich  in  the 
garniture  of  knowledge.  He  added  a  diction  pure, 
chaste,  simple  and  elegant,  and  spoke  with  an  earnest- 
ness of  spirit  which  excluded  all  suspicion  of  affecta- 
tion. His  sincerity,  then,  was  not  to  be  doubted. 
He  was  playing  no  part.  He  was  fully  possessed  by 
his  theme,  and  was  laboring  to  impress  the  truth,  as' 
he  had  found  it,  upon  the  minds  of  his  hearers.  "His 
eloquence,"  says  Dr.  Henry,  "  was  the  eloquence  of 
mind  fraught  with  that  sublimity  and  energy  which 
noble  thoughts  can  alone  inspire  into  the  orator,  or 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        115 

enable  him  effectually  to  transfuse  into  the  minds  of 
others."  "  When  he  had  fairly  entered  upon  his  sub- 
ject/' says  the  same  eminent  gentleman,  "nothing 
could  resist  the  fervid  impetuosity  of  his  manner."  But 
it  was  in  the  pulpit  that  he  earned  his  greatest  honors 
as  an  orator.  He  was  not  the  vapid  declaimer,  who 
won  compliments  by  the  beauty  of  his  well  turned 
periods,  and  the  graces  of  his  elocution.  He  deserved 
the  praise  which  was  accorded  to  Bourdaloue,  of  giving 
us  from  the  pulpit  eloquence  always  reasonable.  Good 
sense  and  logic  pervaded  the  whole  body  of  his  dis- 
courses. They  were  full  of  something  that  was  grand, 
noble  and  inspiring ;  of 

"  Thoughts  that  wander  through  eternity." 

Let  it  not  be  thought  that  I  have  exaggerated  his 
powers  as  an  orator.  All  who  ever  heard  him  will  testify 
to  its  surpassing  excellence.  His  fame  was  established 
before  he  removed  to  South  Carolina,  and  at  the  North 
he  was  regarded  as  unrivalled  in  the  pulpit.  I  have 
already  given  the  testimony  of  his  colleague,  Dr. 
Henry.  I  will  add  that  of  a  few  more  witnesses.  The 
Hon.  James  L.  Petigru,  in  his  Semi-Centennial  Address 
says,"  Never  will  the  charm  of  his  eloquence  be  erased 
from  the  memory  on  which  its  impression  has  once  been 
made.  His  elocution  was  equally  winning  and  peculiar. 
He  spoke  in  the  most  deliberate  manner ;  his  voice 
was  clear  and  gentle  ;  his  action  composed  and  quiet ; 
yet  no  man  had  such  command  over  the  noisy  sallies 
of  youth.  The  most  riotous  offender  shrank  from  the 
reproof  of  that  pale  brow  and  intellectual  eye."  The 
Honorable  Senator  Evans,  in  a  letter  addressed  to  me, 


116        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

remarks,  "  that  he  was  a  wonderful  man ;  and  take  him 
altogether,  the  greatest  orator  I  have  ever  heard  in  the 
pulpit."  His  Honor  Judge  O'Neall  writes  to  me,  that 
"his  addresses  to  the  graduating  classes,  and  his 
sermons,  were  the  finest  specimens  of  eloquence  and 
truth  to  which  it  has  been  my  privilege  to  listen." 
Let  me  add  my  humble  testimony  to  his  power  in  the 
pulpit,  for  I  have  had  the  privilege  of  seeing  him  in 
the  sacred  desk.  I  was  but  a  lad,  with  all  the  thought- 
lessness and  frivolity  which  generally  mark  the  period ; 
but  young  as  I  was,  there  was  a  something  about  him 
which  enchained  my  attenion.  I  can  bear  witness  to 
the  commanding  influence  of  his  presence.  I  was  but 
six  months  under  his  administration.  He  was  then  the 
subject  of  infirmities  which,  alas  !  were  soon  to  prove 
fatal ;  he  appeared  seldom  in  the  chapel,  and  met  the 
class  of  which  I  was  a  member  very  irregularly. 
Thirty-eight  years  have  elapsed,  but  he  lives  before 
me  as  if  he  was  of  yesterday.  I  am  not  aware  that 
any  one  who  has  written  of  Dr.  Maxcy,  has  called 
attention  to  him  as  a  reader.  I  remember  well  its 
peculiar  excellence,  and  the  impression  which  it  made 
upon  me.  I  will  not  say  that  it  was  critically  correct, 
for  I  was  not  competent  to  pass  a  judgment  in  that 
particular.  But  I  will  say  that  he  threw  into  it  the 
very  soul  of  eloquence ;  that  there  was  a  music,  a 
flow,  a  cadence,  which  arrested  the  attention  of  the 
thoughtless  boy,  and  charmed,  while  it  instructed. 
How  is  it  that  I  can  call  up  passages  and  chapters 
from  the  Bible  which  I  heard  him  read  in  the  chapel  ? 
There  can  be  but  one  answer  :  there  was  a  something 
in  that  reading  which  was  not  possessed  by  other  men. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        317 

I  shall  never  forget  that  I  heard  him  read  the  llth 
Chapter  of  St.  Matthew,  and  when  he  uttered  the 
curse  against  Chorazin,  Tyre?  and  Sidon,  and  haughty 
Capernaum,  and  declared  tjie  awful  destruction  which 
was  soon  to  overtake  them,  I  felt  that  a  prophet  was 
hefore  me,  fresh  from  the  presence  of  his  God. 

What  shall  I  say  of  him  as  a  teacher  ?  I  will  not 
say  that  he  was  unequalled ;  but  the  united  testimony 
of  all  his  pupils  and  colleagues  justify  the  assertion 
that  he  was  never  surpassed.  In  the  South  Carolina 
College  he  was  the  Teacher  of  Belles  Lettres  and  Criti- 
cism, and  Metaphysics.  He  was  remarkable  for  the 
clearness  of  his  perception,  and  for  the  ease,  facility 
and  precision  of  his  expression.  Dr.  Henry  has  often, 
in  conversation  with  me,  dwelt  with  rapture  on  this 
part  of  his  character.  He  has  frequently  said  to  me 
that  he  would  analyse  a  chapter  in  Kames  or  Locke 
with  more  readiness  than  any  man  he  ever  saw,  and 
present  all  the  material  points  of  the  discussion  with  a 
perspicuity  he  has  never  seen  equalled.  What  a  guide 
through  the  intricate  labyrinths  of  metaphysical  dis- 
cussion ?  How  valuable  to  the  students  when,  with 
all  their  toil  and  all  their  labor,  they  could  reach  no 
conclusion  !— 

"They  found  no  end,  in  wandering  mazes  lost !" 

I  trust  that  it  will  not  be  regarded  beneath  the  dig- 
nity of  my  subject  if  I  inquire  whether  he  had  wit  or 
humor,  or  relished  it  jn  others ;  whether  he  could  tell 
a  good  story,  or  enjoyed  it  when  he  heard  it;  whether 
he  could  make  others  laugh,  or  could  laugh  himself.  I 
may  be  a  poor  analyst  of  the  mind,  and  have  a  very 


118        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

inadequate  knowledge  of  the  elements  which  make  up 
the  bulk  of  human  character — I  may  over-value  some, 
and  place  too  low  an  estimate  on  others.  Well,  be  it 
so.  Let  others  think  as  ,they  may,  but  I  am  bold 
enough  to  declare  the  opinion,  that  there  never  was  an 
amiable  man  who  could  not  laugh.  Whether  Dr. 
Maxcy  indulged  in  wit  or  humor,  or  story-telling,  I 
cannot  say ;  but  he  could  laugh  heartily.  In  illus- 
tration I  give  the  following  incident :  In  the  summer 
of  1819,  he  visited  the  village  of  Edgefield,  where  I 
resided.  At  that  time  a  certain  Edmund  Bacon  lived 
in  the  place.  He  was  a  lawyer  by  profession,  and 
nature  was  liberal  to  him  in  the  gifts  of  a  command- 
ing person,  and  high  intellectual  endowments.  Su- 
peradded  to  this  was  a  humor  rarely  possessed  by 
man.  I  may  be  pardoned  for  saying  that  he  is  the 
"Ned  Brace"  of  the  "Georgia  Scenes."  He  abounded 
in  stories  and  anecdotes,  and  dealt  them  out  with  mar- 
vellously comic  effect.  He  was  indeed  resistless.  He 
"would  move  wild  laughter  in  the  throat  of  death." 
He  was  the  prince  of  hospitality,  and  no  man  of  note 
ever  visited  the  village  without  being  invited  to  his 
table.  Dr.  Maxcy  was  of  course  invited.  After  din- 
ner, the  guests  being  yet  at  the  table,  Mr.  Bacon 
began  with  his  stories,  and  his  inimitable  representa- 
tions. As  he  had  before  him  an  extraordinary  man, 
and  a  critic  of  rare  acuteness,  he  put  forth  his  high- 
est powers,  and  was  more  than  himself.  The  Doctor 
was  not  slow  to  perceive  his  ^onderful  genius,  and 
soon  an  overwhelming  influence  was  passing  over  him. 
Story  after  story  was  told  in  succession ;  all  that  is 
comic,  all  that  is  grotesque,  all  that  is  ludicrous  in 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        119 

human  nature,  was  presented  with  the  force  of  living 
reality.  The  Doctor  laughed,  -and  as  the  great  actor 
continued  his  representations,  the  pleasant  emotion 
gradually  increased  in  intensity,  until  he  lost  all  con- 
trol. But  it  did  not  stop  here.  He  laughed  until 
every  muscle  was  convulsed,  and  until  he  produced 
acute  pain  in  his  sides,  and  a  sensation  of  languor  and 
exhaustion.  His  health,  as  the  reader  knows,  was 
delicate.  Mr.  B.  was  still  going  on.  The  company 
became  alarmed ;  the  Doctor's  condition  was  now 
serious.  It  was  apprehended  that,  like  another 
Philemon,  he  might  die  of  laughter.  Mr.  B.  was 
asked  to  desist.  The  Doctor  was  carried  from  the 
house  to  recover  from  the  effect.  He  was  heard 
afterwards  to  speak  of  Mr.  Bacon  as  the  most 
wonderful  man  he  ever  met,  and  far  surpassing  all 
the  comic  actors  of  ancient  or  modern  times. 

My  sketch  would  be  very  incomplete  if  I  failed  to 
speak  particularly  of  his  personal  morality  and  Chris- 
tian profession.  These  were  in  beautiful  harmony  with 
the  rest  of  his  character.  He  was  pure  and  upright  in 
his  walk,  and  discharged  with  fidelity  all  his  duties  to 
society.  His  religion  was  simple  and  unostentatious, 
and  had,  as  its  only  ornament,  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit. 
It  was  broad  and  catholic,  and  embraced  all  who  love 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  sincerity.  It  was  free  from 
dogmatism,  and  without  the  exclusiveness  of  secta- 
rianism. He  was  a  member  of  the  Baptist  denomina- 
tion, and  sincerely  attached  to  its  faith ;  yet  in  his 
conversations  and  discourses,  he  preferred  not  to  dwell 
on  its  distinctive  peculiarities,  but  rather  upon  the 
common  grounds  on  which  all  Christians  are  agreed. 


120        HISTORY  OP  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

His  religion  was  amiable,  and  he  was  opposed  on 
principle  to  the  spirit  of  controversy  and  intolerance. 
As  might  be  supposed,  this  led  to  reproaches  upon 
him,  and  he  was  accused  by  some  of  lukewarmness. 
But  he  proved  his  Christian  spirit  by  receiving  the 
calumnies  in  silence. 

My  task  is  nearly  finished.  I  have  endeavored  to 
give  my  reader  a  just  idea  of  the  first  President  of  the 
South  Carolina  College.  I  well  knew  the  difficulty  of 
the  undertaking ;  but  I  trust  that  I  have  not  failed 
altogether.  Others  must  judge  whether  I  have 
unveiled  the  sources  of  his  power  ;  whether  I  have 
removed  any  of  the  mystery  by  which  his  name  and 
his  reputation  are  encircled.  I  have  only  to  speak  of 
the  last  sad  scene ;  to  view  him  upon  the  bed  of  death. 
The  reader  has  been  informed  already,  that  four  days 
before  the  melancholy  event,  he  presided  at  a  meeting 
of  the  Faculty.  Notwithstanding  his  long  declin- 
ing health,  his  death  was  sudden  and  unexpected, 
and  the  intelligence  produced  a  shock  in  every  bosom. 
His  beloved  pupils  gathered  around  his  venerated 
body  to  look  upon  it  for  the  last  time,  and  the  tear 
which  moistened  every  eye  spoke  the  fervor  of  their 
affection.  Never  shall  I  forget  the  scene.  It  still 
lives,  and  will  continue  in  my  memory,  amid  the 
mighty  wreck  of  the  past.  I  was  invited  by  his  son 
Jonathan,  then  a  student  in  College,  to  watch  over  his 
body  at  night.  Need  I  tell  the  emotions  of  a  boy 
who  was  now  for  the  first  time  in  the  company  of 
Death  !  I  looked  upon  his  pale  face  ;  life  was  gone. 
From  the  brilliant  eye,  now  closed  in  death,  no  longer 
shot  forth  the  light  of  genius ;  but  his  brow  was  serene, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        121 

and  he  slept  in  peace.  The  Faculty  assembled  on  the 
morning  of  the  5th  June,  1820,  and  passed  appropriate 
resolutions.  Similar  resolutions  were  adopted  by  the 
students  of  the  College.  His  body  was  borne  to  the 
grave  on  the  shoulders  of  his  pupils,  and  committed  to 
the  dust  amid  the  heartfelt  regrets  of  the  vast  assembly 
who  were  present  to  do  him  honor.  1  should  be 
doing  great  injustice  if  I  omitted  to  give  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  Board  of  Trustees.  At  their  first  meeting 
(November  29,)  Dr.  Henry,  the  Secretary  of  the 
Faculty,  communicated  the  sad  intelligence,  and  I  beg 
leave  to  present  the  following  extract,  as  it  contains  a 
high  and  just  eulogium  upon  his  character  :  "  Since  we 
last  had  the  honor  to  address  you,  the  relentless  hand 
of  death  has  arrested  our  learned  and  excellent  col- 
league, Dr.  Maxcy,  in  the  midst  of  his  career  of  glory 
and  usefulness.  On  the  melancholy  occasion  of  his 
funeral,  we  felt  it  our  indispensable  duty  to  pay  his 
remains  those  painful  and  public  marks  of  respect 
which  are  usual  on  such  occasions,  and  to  which  his 
high  reputation  and  his  long  and  important  services 
peculiarly  entitled  him.  In  so  doing  we  confidently 
anticipated  your  entire  approbation  and  concurrence, 
and  accordingly  desired  your  treasurer  to  make  the 
requisite  disbursements."  The  feelings  of  the  Board 
are  sufficiently  set  forth  in  the  following  preamble  and 
resolutions,  which  were  unanimously  adoped  : 

"  The  Trustees  of  the  South  Carolina  College,  sen- 
sible of  the  great  loss  which  the  Institution  has  sus- 
tained in  the  death  of  the  late  venerable  President, 
the  Kev.  Dr.  Maxcy,  and,  as  some  evidence  of  the 


122        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

estimation  and  respect  in  which  they  hold  his  memory, 
adopt  the  following  resolutions  : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  Treasurer  of  the  College,  out  of 
the  balance  of  the  salary  fund  for  the  year  1820,  do 
pay  to  Mrs.  Maxcy  one  quarter's  salary  in  addition  to 
that  he  has  already  paid  her. 

"  Resolved,  That  the  governor  be  requested  to  lay 
before  the  Legislature  the  wishes  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees,  that  they  would  allow  Mrs.  Maxcy  such  an 
annual  sum  of  money  as  they  may  think  sufficient  for 
the  support  of  herself  and  the  education  of  her 
minor  children." 

But  little  more  remains  to  be  said.  Professors, 
Students,  and  Trustees,  have  now  laid  the  richest 
offerings  upon  the  tomb  of  Maxcy.  The  halls  of 
learning,  the  sacred  desk,  shall  know  him  no  longer. 
But  his  mission  was  accomplished,  the  College  was 
established,  and  a  common  fame  is  to  unite  them  in 
all  time  to  come.  He  was  now  to  give  way  to  others. 
Whatever  the  success  of  those  who  were  to  follow, 
whatever  the  amount  of  genius,  and  learning,  and 
service,  he  was  securely  enshrined  in  the  heart  of  the 
State,  and  was  to  enjoy  the  proud  distinction  of  being, 
under  God,  the  great  pioneer  in  the  noble  work  of 
diffusing  the  blessings  of  education  among  her  people. 

One  more  offering  was  yet  to  be  made  by  his  beloved 
pupils — one  more  demonstration  to  be  given  of  their  re- 
spect and  confidence.  I  have  now  to  add  that  the  Clario- 
sophic  Society  of  the  College  erected  in  the  centre  of 
the  Campus  a  costly  monument  to  his  memory,  with  the 
following  inscription  in  Latin,  composed  by  Dr.  Henry : 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        123 

West  Face. 
s.  M. 

REVERENDI  .  ADMODVM  .  VIRI 

JONATHANIS  .  MAXCY .  S  .  T  .  P  . 

COLLEGII  .  CAROLINAE  .  AVSTRALIS 

PRINCIPIS  .  PRAEFECTI 
RARIS  .  ET  .  PRAECELLENTIBVS  .  INGENII  .  DOTIBVS  .  FVLTVS  .  QVALES 

VEL  .  SVMMIS  .  DIGNITATIBVS  .  CONSTITISSENT  .  AVSPICIO  .  BONO 

HVJVS  .  INSTITYTI  .  PRAESES  .  RELATVS  .  EST  .  IN  .  IPSO  .  TEMPORIS 

MOMENTO    .    CVM    .    SINGVLARIA    .    EJVS    .    MVNERA    .    MAXIME    .    ESSENT 

ALVMNIS    .    EMOLVMENTO    .    AD    .    FINGENDOS   .    MORES   .    LITERARIOS 

VEL  .  AD  .  CASTIGANDA  .  JVDICIA  .  NEC  .  NON  .  VIAM  .  QVA  .  APVD 

HOMINES   .  GRATIAM  .  PARERENT  .  MONSTRANDO  .  ANIMOSQVE 

EORVM    .    STVDIO    .    BONARVM    .  ARTIVM  .   INFLAMMANDO 
TALIS  .  ERAT  .  PRAELECTOR    .  VT  .  IN  .  ILLO    .  NON  .    INGENII  .  VIS  .  NON  .    LVMINA 

NON  .  VERBORVM  .  FELICITAS  .  NEC  .  DECORI  .  GESTVS  .  ILLECEBRAE  .  ET 

AD  .  COMMOVENDOS  .    AFFECTVS  .  INSIGNITER  .   APTAE  .  DESIDERARENTVR 

OFFICIVM  .  PRAECEPTORIS  .  TANTA  .  PERITIA  .  SVSTINEBAT  .  VT  .  DVM 

SCIENTIAM  .  IMPERTIRET  .  SIMVL  .  ARTEM  .  VERA  .  INVESTIGANDI 
ET  .  BENE  .  RATIOCINANDI  .  FACILI  .   AC  .  JVSTA  .  METHODO  .    DOCERET 

East  Face. 

ADEO 

BE  .  HABILEM  •  COLLEGII  .  MODERATOREM  .  PRAESTITIT 

VT  .  INTER  .  ALVMNOS  .  JVXTA  .  CONCORDIAM .  AVCTORITATEMQVE 

LEGVM  .  SERVARET  .  EVITANDO  .  SIMVL  .  DVRITIAM 

CVRIOSAMQVE  .  NIMIS  .  EXPLORATIONEM 

DOCTRINAE  .  CHRISTIANAE  .  ASSERTOR  .    IPSE  .  MITEM 

EVANGELII  .  SAPIENTIAM  .  EXCOLEBAT  .  VIAMQVE  .  SA^LVTIS 

SEMPITERNAE    .    ARGVMENTIS  .  EX  .  LIMATISSIMA 

PHILOSOPHIA  .  PETITIS  .  TVEBATVR 
HAVD  .  FACILE  .  ALIVM  .  INVENERIS  .  CVI  .  CONTIGIT  .  BENEFICIA 

AVT  .  MAJORA  .  AVT  .  DIVTVRNIORA  .  ERGA  .  HANG  .  NOSTRAM 
CIVITATEM    .    PROFERRE    .    NEMINEM    .    CERTE    .    QVEM    .    JVVENTVS 

NOSTRA  .  PIA  .  AC  .  GRATA  .  MENTE  .  PERINDE  .  EXTOLLIT 
PARENTEMQVE  .  STVDIORVM  .  REIPVBLICAE  .  FAVTOREM  .  CONCLAMAT 

DESIDERIO  .  TANTI .  VIRI  .  ET .  IPSIVS  .  MEMORIA  .  BENEFICIORVM 

PERCVLSA    .    FAMILIA    .    ACADEMICA   .    EX  .  APOLLINE    .    CLARIORVM 

NVNCVPATA  .  CVJVS  .  OLIM  .  ILLE  .  SOCIVS  .  ERAT 

H  .  M  .  P  .  C 

South  Face. 

NATVS  .  IN  .  CIVITATE  .  MASSACHVSETTS 


IV  .  NONAS    .  SEPTEMBRIS  .  M  .  DCC  .  LXVIII 

North  Face. 

HIS  .  IN  .  AEDIBVS  .  ANIMAM  .  EFFLAVIT 

PRIDIE  .  NONAS  .  JVNII  .  ANNOQVE  .  S  .  H  . 

M  .  DCCC    .  XX 


124        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Vain,  however,  are  all  attempts  to  bestow  immor- 
tality by  monuments  of  granite  or  of  marble.  He 
lives  in  tEe  history  of  the  College ;  he  lives  in  the 
bosom  of  his  numerous  pupils ;  and  when  the  monu- 
mental stone,  with  its  inscription,  shall  have  crumbled 
into  dust,  his  name  shall  yet  survive ;  and  time,  which 
destroys  all  the  works  of  art,  shall  give  him  brighter 
lustre  and  renown. 

Christian  Hanckel  was  born  in  Philadelphia,  about 
December  22d,  1789.  His  father  was  a  practitioner 
of  medicine  in  that  city,  and  emigrated  with  his  family 
from  Germany  in  1 784.  He  strongly  sympathised  with 
the  Quakers,  and  though  not  a  professed  member  of  the 
sect,  attended  their  worship,  and  required  his  children 
to  do  the  same.  Dr.  Hanckel  received  his  academic  edu- 
cation at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  and  took  his 
degree  there  in  June,  1810.  He  was  admitted  to  Holy 
Orders  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  the  United 
States  at  St.  Michael's  Church,  Charleston,  by  the 
Reverend  Theodore  Dehon,  March  15th,  1813,  and 
immediately  after,  was  invited  to  take  charge  of  the 
German  Lutheran  Church  on  Archdale  Street.  With 
the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Bishop,  he  accepted  the 
invitation,  but  officiated  as  an  Episcopal  clergyman. 
His  health  failed  under  the  arduous  duties  of  the 
charge,  and  he  was  compelled  to  resign  it  at  the  expi- 
ration of  a  year.  Suffering  from  repeated  hemorrhage 
of  the  lungs,  he  was  for  a  time  withdrawn  from  the 
pulpit.  As  soon  as  his  health  would  allow,  he  officiated 
a  winter  and  spring  in  St.  Luke's  Parish,  serving  alter- 
nately Coosawhatchie  Court  House,  and  the  Episcopal 
Church  then  standing  near  May  river.  He  labored 


HISTOEY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        125 

another  winter  and  spring  in  Prince  William's  Parish, 
and  was  the  first  clergyman  to  officiate  in  the  Parish 
Church  after  the  Revolution.  It  was  an  occasion  of 
rare  interest.  The  building  was  in  ruins  ;  the  walls, 
and  columns  of  the  portico  alone  were  standing — sad 
monument  of  the  violence  and  lawlessness  of  those 
times.  The  forest  had  resumed  its  sway,  and  the 
interior  was  filled  with  a  large  growth  of  trees,  which 
had  to  be  cut  down  by  one  of  the  parishioners.  Boards 
were  placed  on  the  stumps  for  seats,  and  with 
no  covering  but  the  clear  blue  sky  of  a  balmy 
spring  day,  the  man  of  God  once  more  proclaimed  to 
a  large  and  respectable  audience,  the  glad  tidings  of 
salvation.  His  text  was  taken  from  the  84th  Psalm, 
1st,  2d,  and  3d  verses.  The  resignation  of  Professor 
Blackburn  left  vacant  the  Mathematical  chair,  and, 
April  15th,  1815,  he  was  elected  Tutor  of  that 
department.  December  1st  of  that  year,  he  was 
elected  to  the  Professorship.  December  3d,  1819,  he 
resigned  his  Professorship,  to  take  eifect  in  a  year,  and, 
according  to  notice,  left  the  College  at  the  close  of 
1820.  I  believe  that  Dr.  Hanckel,  like  Dr.  Mont- 
gomery, was  mainly  induced  to  connect  himself  with 
the  College  by  the  hope  that  he  could  render  efficient 
service  in  building  up  the  Church  of  his  particular 
communion  at  Columbia.  I  think  that  a  chair  in  a 
College  never  had  any  special  attractions  for  him. 
His  whole  soul  is  in  the  ministry,  and  with  fidelity 
has  he  devoted  nearly  a  half  century  to  his  sacred 
calling.  Let  it  not  be  supposed,  however,  that  he 
neglected  any  duty  connected  with  his  department' in 
the  College,  or  that  he  was  ever  wanting  in  proper 
8 


126        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

zeal  to  advance  the  highest  interests  of  the  Institution. 
With  such  a  man  such  a  course  was  impossible.  Dr. 
Maxcy,  in  his  official  reports  to  the  Board  of  Trustees, 
fully  endorses  the  value  of  his  labors.  He  retired 
from  the  College  to  take  charge  of  the  congre- 
gation of  St.  Paul's  Church,  Charleston,  where  he  has 
officiated  ever  since  with  great  singleness  of  purpose, 
and  ability.  His  highest  honor  is  to  be  found  in  the 
love  and  attachment  of  such  a  congregation  through  so 
long  a  period.  He  has  now  reached  the  good  age  of 
three  score  and  ten,  and  is  probably  the  oldest 
officiating  clergyman  in  his  diocese.  Fully  appreciated 
for  his  exalted  Christian  character,  having  the  advan- 
tages of  a  large  experience,  distinguished  for  the  sober- 
ness of  his  counsel,  and  the  soundness  of  his  judgment, 
few  have  exerted  as  large  an  influence  over  the 
interests  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  and  for  few  will  as 
many  tears  be  shed  when  it  pleases*  God  to  remove 
him  from  the  scene  of  his  earthly  labors. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Trustees  on  the  29th  of 
November,  William  K.  Clowiiey  was  elected  Tutor,  to 
hold  his  office  for  twelve  months.  On  the  2d  of 
December  James  Wallace  was  duly  elected  Professor 
of  Mathematics,  to  serve  for  one  year.  On  the  15th 
Dr.  Cooper  was  elected  President  pro  tempore,  and  the 
duties  of  the  office  were  divided  between  Dr.  Cooper, 
Professor  Henry,  and  Professor  Wallace  ;  and  it  was 
resolved  to  give  proper  compensation,  at  a  future  day, 
for  such  extra  services. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

The  year  1821  is  upon  us.  The  gifted  Maxcy  is 
no  more ;  Cooper  is  in  the  Chair  of  the  Presidency, 
and  holds  the  reins  of  government.  What  a  future 
is  before  him !  He  is  to  experience  the  extremes  of 
fortune.  Caressed  by  the  Board  at  the  commence- 
ment of  his  administration,  almost  idolized  for  his 
genius  and  learning,  he  brings  to  his  solemn  charge 
the  prestige  of  a  mighty  name,  and  is  permitted  to 
wield  an  almost  irresponsible  power.  But,  alas !  as 
we  pursue  the  thread  of  events,  the  scene  becomes 
chequered.  He  is  to  experience  the  saddest  reverses, 
and  in  his  old  age  to  have  nothing  left  but  the  recol- 
lection of  honors  now  withheld,  and  glories  now 
departed.  The  proceedings  of  the  Board  for  the  year 
have  no  peculiar  interest  except  in  the  matter  of  the 
elections.  The  new  President  was  busy  with  his 
work,  and  at  the  Spring  meeting  of  the  Trustees  made 
many  suggestions  for  their  consideration.  These  were 
in  reference  to  the  Course  of  Instruction,  and  are  not 
deemed  worthy  of  enumeration.  It  is  important  to 
mention  that  it  was  now  resolved;  that  hereafter  the 
Latin  Salutatory  Oration  shall  be  the  mark  of  the 
first  honor ;  heretofore  it  had  been  the  Valedictory. 
On  Deceinber  1st,  the  Board  proceeded  to  the  elec- 
tion of  a  President.  Dr.  Cooper,  the  President  pro 
tempore,  was  now  permanently  elected.  The  Mathe- 
matical Professorship  being  vacant,  James  Wallace, 


128        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

who  had  been  filling  it  temporarily,  was  elected,  and 
Win.  K.  Clowney,  Tutor  pro  tempore,  now  received  the 
permanent  appointment.  Dr.  Cooper  carried  with 
him  into  the  Presidency  his  former  department  of 
Chemistry,  and  the  Legislature  was  requested  to 
appropriate  the  salary  allowed  to  the  Professor  of 
Chemistry  to  the  Professor  of  Belles  Lettres  and  Meta- 
physics. December  3d,  the  Board  proceeded  to  the 
election  of  a  Professor  of  Geology  and  Mineralogy  to 
serve  for  one  year,  with  a  salary  of  one  thousand  dol- 
lars. He  was  also  required  to  perform  the  duties  of 
adjunct  Professor  of  Chemistry.  Lardner  Vanuxem 
was  duly  elected.  Dr.  Cooper  had  officiated  at  the 
recent  Commencement,  and  was  requested  by  the 
Board  to  furnish  a  copy  of  his  Address  to  the  gradu- 
ates, for  publication  in  pamphet  form.  The  last  act 
of  the  year  was  to  request  the  Governor  to  apply  to 
the  Legislature  for  an  appropriation  of  three  thousand 
dollars,  for  the  purchase  of  Dr.  Cooper's  collection  of 
minerals  for  the  use  of  the  College. 

There  is  very  little  of  interest  in  the  proceedings  of 
the  Faculty  for  the  year.  The  Commons  Hall  pro- 
duced more  than  its  usual  disorder,  and  much  of  the 
time  of  the  Faculty  was  consumed  in  investigation^ 
of  assaults  upon  it.  An  officer  of  the  College  ^as 
burnt  in  effigy,  and  equestrian  exercises  were  quite 
fashionable.  There  were  at  that  time  two  horses  in 
the  walls  belonging  respectively  to  Dr.  Cooper  and 
Professor  Park.  Poor  Blanche  and  Calico !  .  Seven 
and  thirty  years  have  passed  since  you  bid  adieu 
to  mortal  scenes,  but  you  are  not  forgotten.  There 
yet  live  those  who  remember  your  kindly  nature,  your 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        129 

free  and  gentle  spirit,  your  toil,  your  suffering,  your 
patient  endurance  of  wrong.  With  the  mention  of 
one  case  of  discipline,  I  shall  close  the  account  of  the 
year.  The  penalty  was  peculiar.  This  morning,  at 
our  Faculty  meeting,  we  had  just  such  a  case,  and 
were  puzzled  what  to  do.  Oh !  that  I  had  known  the 
precedent ;  but  it  was  not  until  to-night  that  I  made 
the  discovery.  Let  me  say  that  our  law  declares  that 
no  student  shall  leave  the  bounds  of  Columbia  without 
the  permission  of  the  President.  But  what  are  laws 
without  a  penalty  ?  What  punishment  shall  be  in- 
flicted for  its  violation  ?  That  was  the  question  jvhich 
vexed  us  this  morning.  Here,  then,  is  a  precedent 
which  may  serve  us  as  a  guide  in  all  future  times.  A 
student  was  charged  with  being  absent  from  the  Town 
without  permission.  He  confessed  the  fact,  and  the 
Faculty  determined  to  punish  him  with  severity.  It 
was  therefore  resolved  unanimously,  "  that  he  be  re- 
quired to  construe  and  commit  to  memory  twenty 
lines  of  Virgil's  ^Eneid,  and  not  be  seen  out  of  the 
Campus  until  he  had  done  so." 

The  year  1822  opened  with  the  most  serious  disor- 
der. At  a  meeting  of  the  Faculty  in  January,  the 
President  announced  the  existence  of  a  combination 
*in  the  Junior  Class,  and  that  all,  with  the  exception  of 
the  monitor,  had  absented  themselves  from  the  two 
o'clock  recitation  of  the  Monday  previous.  Thus  early 
commenced  the  troubles  of  the  new  administration — 
troubles  which,  as  we  shall  see,  were  to  increase  with 
time,  and  to  have  their  consummation  years  afterwards 
in  the  deepest  convulsion.  After  due  deliberation  the 
Faculty  resolved  unanimously,  that  the  most  lenient 


130        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

course  of  proceeding  would  be  to  call  them,  and  re- 
quire them  to  sign  a  promise  of  more  regular  behavior 
in  future.  The  paper  was  submitted  to  the  students, 
and  but  few  signed  it.  Objections  were  made  to  the 
form  of  the  pledge,  and  the  Faculty,  in  the  hope  of 
removing  them,  agreed  to  modify  it.  The  hope 
was  vain.  The  majority  of  the  students  still  re- 
jected it,  and  the  Faculty  determined,  under  the  circum- 
stances, to  call  a  meeting  of  such  members  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  as  were  in  Columbia,  and  await  the 
result  of  their  deliberations.  The  Trustees  assem- 
bled, .and  his  Excellency  the  Governor  presided. 
They  addressed  a  letter  to  the  recusant  students, 
"  enforcing  the  propriety  of  their  compliance,"  and 
allowing  them  several  days  for  consideration.  The 
period  having  expired,  and  the  students  not  having 
complied,  the  sentence  of  suspension  was  pronounced 
against  them.  At  the  meeting  of  the  Board  in  May, 
the  President  reported  fully  the  disturbances  in  the 
College,  with  the  action  of  the  Faculty,  and  that  action 
was  formally  approved.  At  the  meeting  of  November 
29th,  Mr.  Porter,  one  of  the  Tutors,  gave  notice  of  resig- 
nation. It  seems  that  Dr.  Cooper  had  been  required 
to  teach  the  Belles  Lettres,  and  the  Board  now 
declared  the  Professorship  of  Chemistry  vacant,  and 
advertised  that  an  election  twould  take  place  at  the 
next  stated  meeting  in  November.  Nothing  of  in- 
terest occurs  in  the  proceedings  of  the  Faculty  at  the 
close  of  the  year.  That  the  students  were  wholly  in 
the  wrong  in  their  issues  with  the  Faculty,  does  not 
admit  of  reasonable  question.  They  were  called  upon 
to  give  a  pledge  of  future  good  conduct ;  but  they 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        131 

refused.  They  deserved  their  punishment;  the  law 
had  to  be  maintained,  or  the  College  abandoned  at 
once.  The  rebellion  was  most  unfortunate.  It  indi- 
cated a  bad  temper  on  the  part  of  the  students ;  and, 
occurring  almost  at  the  commencement  of  a  new 
administration,  shocked  the  public  mind,  and  aroused 
a  feeling  of  doubt  and  distrust  concerning  its  efficiency. 
I  care  not  how  strong  the  case — I  care  not  what  may 
be  the  circumstances,  the  suspension  of  large  numbers 
is  a  sad  necessity.  True  there  are  times  when  it  must 
be  done,  and  the  young  men  must  know  that  numbers 
will  not  give  immunity.  There  may  be  occasions 
when  every  thing  must  be  sacrificed  to  the  majesty  of 
the  law,  but  what  a  mighty  sacrifice  is  it!  The 
supreme  authority  may  give  a  formal  approval,  may 
pass  a  vote  of  thanks ;  but  yet  the  necessity  stands 
out  as  a  startling  calamity.  And  why — to  cripple  an 
Institution  at  least  for  years — to  blast  the  hopes  of 
its  friends,  and  to  strengthen  the  hands  of  its  enemies 
— these  surely  are  not  small  things.  The  administra- 
tion did  suffer  then,  from  the  recent  rebellion.  The 
College  was  weakened,  and  yet  the  reflecting  justi- 
fied fully  the  punishment  of  the  students.  The  year 
was  not  one  of  success ;  one-third  of  the  young  men 
had  been  dismissed,  and  the  future  was  looked  to  with 
feelings  of  unusual  apprehension. 

I  have  now  to  sketch  the  history  of  the'year  1823. 
Would  that  I  could  speak  of  it  as  furnishing  a  striking 
contrast  with  the  last ;  as  distinguished  for  its  order 
and  quiet,  and  freedom  from  irregularities.  The  first 
months  of  the  year  were  distinguished  for  the  repeated 
removal  of  the  steps  of  the  public  buildings.  It  is  the 


132        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

first  notice  of  it  in  the  proceedings  of  the  Faculty,  but 
it  is  not  the  year  in  which  the  offence  was  inaugurated. 
I  have  myself  seen  the  whole  Faculty  walk  a  ladder  to 
enter  the  Chapel,  and  I  shall  never  forget  the  amuse- 
ment which  it  occasioned.  This  was  in  1821.  The 
ascent  in  the  old  Chapel  was  something  like  six 
feet,  and  to  some  the  undertaking  was  difficult,  and 
not  unaccompanied  with  peril.  The  President,  D 
Cooper,  was  very  clumsy,  and  it  was  plainly  to  be  seen 
that  he  ever  regarded  it  as  an  enterprise  of  great 
hazard,  and  requiring  for  its  execution  great  courage. 
It  was  the  day  of  wooden  steps ;  they  were  easily 
removed,  and  the  annoyance  was  of  frequent  occur- 
rence. In  recalling  the  incidents  of  my  College  life,  I 
can  remember  none  which  afforded  more  merriment, 
and  though  it  must  be  condemned,  there  was  nothing 
very  atrocious  about  it.  It  was  a  popular  amusement, 
and  time,  instead  of  wearing  it  out,  only  strengthened 
and  confirmed  it.  It  had  so  grown  that  by  1823,  it 
was  for  a  period  an  exception  for  the  Faculty  to  enter  \y 
the  Chapel  in  the  morning  by  any  other  way  than  up  a 
ladder !  But  time  was  bringing  its  infirmities,  and  a 
constantly  increasing  incapacity  to  perform  the  danger- 
ous feat.  What  was  to  be  done  ?  Were  venerable  men, 
bowed  down  with  the  weight  of  years,  to  be  compelled, 
day  by  day,  to  perform  this  cruel  service  at  the  hazard 
of  their  limbs,  if  not  of  their  lives  !  It  was,  indeed,  an 
ostracism  of  the  old,  and  would  work  the  saddest 
results  if  not  arrested. 

Let  the  reader  picture  the  scene  to  himself.  The 
whole  College  is  assembled,  and  for  what !  To  see  the 
Faculty  of  the  South  Carolina  College  walk  a  ladder. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        133 

First  comes  Henry;  he  is  in  the  prime  of  life,  strong 
and  active,  and  walks  as  if  he  had  been  trained  in  the 
ancient  school  of  Elis,  and  knew  something  of  the 
business.  He  makes  his  ascent  in  safety.  Then 
come  the  Tutors,  who  perform  equally  well.  Wallace, 
though  not  old,  lacks  confidence.  He  looks,  he  hesi- 
tates, and  surveys  with  the  eye  of  a  mathematician.  He 
calculates  the  distance,  the  angle,  and  calls  up  the 
whole  philosophy  of  falling  bodies.  He  starts,  the 
line  of  gravity  fluctuates,  his  body  oscillates  like  a 
pendulum,  and  he  reaches  the  floor,  reeling  to  and  fro 
like  a  drunken  man.  And  there  stands  the  good,  the 
meek  and  gentle  Professor  Park,  with  his  large  and 
unwieldly  frame.  "  Ah !  young  gentlemen  you  should 
not  treat  your  Professors  so.  It  is  too  bad ;  you  should 
have  pity.  I  am  getting  old;  you  do  not  respect  our 
position."  Dr.  Cooper  was  by  his  side.  "  Have  you 
forgotten,  says  he,  the  lesson  taught  us  by  your 
favorite  master,  old  Homer! 

Forget  we  now  our  state  and  lofty  birth ; 

Not  titles  here,  but  works  must  prove  our  worth." 

"But,"  says  Dr.  Park,  "I  am  to  teach  Latin  and 
Greek;  I  am  not  a  Professor  of  Gymnastics;  I  never 
learned  to  walk  a  rope,  or  climb  a  ladder."  Mighty 
thoughts  fill  the  bosom  of  Cooper.  He  knows  not 
what  may  be  his  fate.  Wallace  stands  on  his  "proud 
eminence,"  and,  elated  by  the  glory  of  his  achievement, 
cries  out,  "  Come,  Dr.  Cooper,  it  is  very  asy? 

"  And  one  brave  hero  fans  another's  fire." 

The  Doctor  had  courage,  and  was  never  reluctant 


134        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

to  risk  his  life  in  the  discharge  of  duty.  He  makes 
the  effort,  but  it  is  impossible.  He  has  dared,  and 
angels  can  do  no  more.  He  staggers  at  the  first  round 
of  the  ladder,  and  plants  himself  again  upon  terra 
firma.  But  he  must  enter.  He  calls  for  help.  He 
asks  Wallace  to  come  down  and  aid  him,  but  he 
politely  refuses.  He  renews  his  effort  at  ascent,  but 
again  fails.  He  now  retires,  taking  to  himself  the 
consolation  of  a  true  philosopher,  that  he  had  put  forth 
his  mightiest  strength,  and  that  he  had  only  failed 
because  it  was  impossible. 

The  Chapel  services  are  over,  and  the  perilous 
descent  has  to  be  made.  To  go  down  a  ladder  'back- 
wards is  an  awkward  and  ludicrous  exhibition  for 
venerable  and  learned  Professors,  and  the  students 
must  be  saved  this  part  of  the  entertainment.  Henry 
prompts  his  comrades : 

"  Nor  prompts  alone,  but  leads  himself  the  war." 

He  goes  to  the  door,  cries  facile  descensus,  and  boldly 
makes  the  leap. 

"The  hero  halts,  and  his  associates  waits." 

The  Tutors  follow,  and  reach  in  safety.  Wallace  is 
behind.  "  It  is  very  high,"  says  he ;  "  terrestrial  gravity 
is  that  force  by  which  all  bodies  are  continually  urged 
towards  the  centre  of  the  earth.  Its  nature  is 
unknown.  Some  of  its  laws  are  well  established.  I 
am  a  heavy  man.  It  is  proportional  to  the  masses 
of  bodies.  The  law  of  acceleration  is  perfectly  under- 
stood, and  before  I  reach  the  ground,  my  velocity  will 
be  very  great."  He  is  aided  in  his  'descent,  the  force 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        135 

of  gravity  is  thus  diminished,  and  he  sustains  no 
injury.  The  welkin  rings  with  the  loud  acclaim,  and 
the  Professors  now  laugh  heartily  at  the  scene  through 
which  they  have  just  passed. 

But  the  Faculty  were  soon  to  deal  with  something 
far  more  serious.  In  April  a  gross  offence  was  com- 
mitted in  the  Chapel,  and  the  proceedings  of  the 
Faculty  in  reference  to  it  shook  the  College  to  its 
foundation.  It  was  determined  to  interrogate  each 
student  in  reference  to  the  commission  of  the  act. 
They  were  accordingly  assembled,  and  the  question 
put.  All  but  twenty-eight  declined  answering,  and 
suspension  was  pronounced  against  them.  At  the 
April  meeting  of  the  Board,  Dr.  Cooper  reported  the 
case  fully,  with  the  action  of  the  Faculty.  The 
report  of  the  President  contains  a  most  elaborate 
argument  against  the  crime  of  combination,  and  por- 
trays its  dangers  with  all  that  terseness  and  power  of 
language  for  which  he  was  remarkable.  And  yet  in 
this  paper  he  insists  with  earnest  eloquence  that  the 
penalty  of  suspension  ought  to  be  remitted.  With 
every  respect  I  must  maintain  that  his  position  is 
indefensible;  that  his  doctrine  is  one  thing,  and  his 
practice  another.  At  the  time  of  making  his  report,  the 
students  had  solemnly  denied  the  right  of  the  Faculty 
to  call  upon  them  for  exculpation.  The  authority  of 
the  officers  was  put  at  open  defiance.  The  President 
states  that  the  suspended  students  had  held  a  meeting, 
and  resolved  that  the  Faculty  had  no  right  to  ask  the 
question ;  that  they  would  persist  in  their  refusal,  and 
that  they  would  not  quit  the  College.  A  few  reflec- 
tions upon  this  case  may  not  be  out  of  place,  as  they 


136        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

have  a  bearing  at  all  times  upon  the  government  and 
discipline  of  the  Institution. 

First,  The  offence  was  of  a  degrading  and  dis- 
honoring nature,  and  every  right-minded  student 
should  have  been  anxious  for  an  opportunity  to  have 
acquitted  himself  at  once  of  it.  It  was  not  the  time 
to  battle  for  an  abstract  principle,  but  to  maintain  the 
cause  of  decency. 

Second,  They  were  wrong  in  the  law,  for  the  Faculty 
had  the  grant  of  express  authority. 

Third,  It  is  better  to  allow  this  privilege  of  excul- 
pation than  to  pursue  the  practice,  as  urged  by  Dr. 
Cooper,  of  Northern  Colleges,  where  students  are  made 
in  all  cases  to  testify  against  each  other.  Talk  as  we 
may,  the  tendency  of  such  a  system  is  degrading.  It 
puts  a  spy  in  every  room,  excites  suspicion,  and 
destroys  confidence.  In  the  former  case,  every 
student  is  arraigned  at  the  bar  of  his  own  conscience. 
It  cultivates  the  love  of  truth,  and  by  augmenting  the 
sense  of  individual  responsibility,  saves  a  most  important 
principle,  and  builds  up  a  manly  and  noble  indepen- 
dence of  character.  In  proof  of  it  I  point  to  the  whole 
experience  of  the  College  from  that  day  to  the  present. 

Fourth,  It  is  difficult  to  carry  out  the  law  against 
large  numbers,  and  sound  policy  demands  that  it  be 
resorted  to  as  seldom  as  possible.  But  one  young  man 
may  have  committed  an  offence,  and  under  the  opera- 
tion of  the  law  scores  of  the  best  and  most  exemplary 
students  are  arraigned,  and  have  the  charge  preferred 
against  them.  To  many  this  is  offensive,  and  then: 
feelings  revolt  instinctively  at  it.  The  Faculty  should 
strive  to  isolate  and  curtail  the  numbers  as  much  as 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        137 

possible.  It  is  obvious  that  it  is  very  liable  to  abuse. 
If  applied  at  all  times,  and  our  young  men  tell  the  truth, 
(as  I  know  they  will,)  no- offence  can  possibly  escape 
detection.  It  was  designed  to  be  applied  only  in 
extreme  cases.  In  the  present  instance  the  Faculty 
appealed  to  it;  and  was  that  appeal  proper?  I  answer 
it  was,  unless  it  is  never  right.  Having  taken  their 
position,  they  were  bound  to  maintain  it,  let  the  con- 
sequences be  what  they  may,  or  the  law  would  be 
covered  with  contempt. 

The  Trustees  declared  that  the  students  had  acted 
inconsistently  with  their  duty,  and  injured  the  char- 
acter of  the  College,  in  refusing  to  comply  with  the 
requisitions  of  the  Faculty ;  and  they  left  it  to  them 
to  pursue  any  course  they  thought  proper. 

The  Minutes  of  the  Faculty  record  that,  May  5th, 
the  students  gave  up  the  name  of  the  person  who  had 
committed  the  offensive  act,  and  the  Faculty  then 
resolved,  "that  the  students  who  had  before  refused  to 
exculpate  themselves,  be  now  restored  to  full  standing 
in  the  College."  Thus  ended  this  serious  disturbance. 
The  year  closed  peacefully.  The  Faculty  passed  ten 
young  gentlemen  to  their  degree,  but  four  of  these 
forfeited  their  diploma  by  declining  to  perform  their 
exercise,  and  thus  the  graduating  class  was  reduced  to 
six.  Upon  the  whole,  the  year  was  an  unhappy  one 
for  the  College.  Nothing  was  added  to  its  reputation, 
but  it  lost  no  small  portion  of  the  public  confidence. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  Nov.  27, 
Alpheus  Baker  was  elected  Tutor. 

All  hail  to  the  year  1824  !  It  was  a  year  of  quiet. 
Judging  by  the  minutes  of  the  Faculty,  (and  I  have 


138        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

no  other  means  of  judging,)  it  had  no  very  decided 
character.  It  is  wanting  very  much  in  events.  There 
are  no  stirring  incidents,  no  riot,  no  combination,  no 
flagrant  violation  of  law,  except  in  a  single  instance. 
One  or  two  students  only  are  suspended,  and  one  ex- 
pelled. It  is  a  smooth  sea,  without  gale  enough  to 
disturb  the  surface.  Prayers  and  recitations,  and  reci- 
tations and  prayers,  and  the  weekly  examination  of 
the  monitors'  bills — these  make  up  pretty  much  the 
year's  history.  Nor  is  this  to  be  complained  of,  if  the 
duties  are  well  discharged.  There  is  no  report  for  the 
year  of  the  state  of  the  College,  either  from  the  Presi- 
dent or  the  Faculty;  certainly  the  records  of  the 
Board  give  not  the  slightest  intimation  of  it.  I  must 
call  attention  again  to  the  infliction  of  a  singular  pen- 
alty by  the  Faculty,  which  I  had  occasion  to  notice 
on  a  former  occasion.  Perhaps  it  worked  well  when 
first  applied,  and  the  Faculty,  taking  encouragement, 
determined  to  avail  themselves  more  freely  of  it.  Two 
students  "were  discovered  shooting  guns  at  the  back 
of  the  Town,"  and  were  called  up,  seriously  admon- 
ished, and  "required  each  to  get  fifty  lines  of  Virgil's 
-/Eneid  by  heart,  and  to  repeat  them  to  the  Faculty  at 
their  next  meeting  on  Monday  next."  April  24, 
James  Divver  was  elected  Tutor  of  Mathematics. — 
December  7,  Henry  J.  Nott  was  elected  Professor  of 
the  Elements  of  Criticism,  Logic,  and  the  Philosophy 
of  Languages.  The  effect  of  the  year  must  have  been 
favorable  to  the  College.  It  must  have  dispelled  some 
of  the  doubts,  and  given  to  some  extent  a  sense  of 
security.  The  President  worked  faithfully,  and  strove 
with  all  his  power  to  augment  its  usefulness.  Nor 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        139 

were  the  Trustees  idle.  Schemes  to  revise  the  laws, 
and  provide  for  a  better  government,  to  abolish  certain 
studies,  and  introduce  others,  were  severally  discussed, 
and  presented  in  elaborate  reports.  I  know  that  some 
of  these  were  urged  by  Dr.  Cooper;  nor  is  he  nor  any 
one  else  to  be  blamed  for  it.  He  had  his  peculiar 
views  of  education,  and  had  a  right  to  entertain  them. 
No  doubt  they  were  the  result  of  sincere  conviction, 
and  nothing  is  more  natural  than  that  he  should  desire 
to  carry  them  out,  and  infuse  them  into  the  popular 
mind. 

The  year  1825  does  not  present  the  same  degree 
of  order  as  that  which  I  have  just  considered.  Early 
in  February  students  were  arraigned  for  grave  offences 
committed  in  the  Town,  in  the  Commons,  and  the 
Library.  A  little  later  the  minutes  of  the  Faculty 
record  the  fact  of  "a  variety  of  disturbances  which 
had  recently  taken  place  in  College."  The  Board  of 
Trustees  had  an  occasional  meeting  in  April,  and  the 
President  communicated  the  state  of  the  College,  the 
condition  of  the  Commons,  the  dilapidation  of  the 
buildings,  the  dispute  between  the  Librarian  and  a 
student,  and  the  recent  conduct  of  an  officer.  The 
President  left  the  State  early  in  the  summer,  and  did 
not  return  until  December.  Professor  Henry,  by 
appointment  of  the  Board,  officiated  at  CommenceT 
ment.  The  Faculty  report  well  of  the  examination 
at  the  close  of  the  year;  and,  in  truth,  1825  went  out 
far  better  than  it  begun.  The  year  is  signalized  by 
the  graduation  of  a  class  of  uncommon  talent.  This 
is  its  glory.  I  am  sorry  to  record  that  in  1826 
there  was  a  general  rebellion  of  the  students.  It 


140        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

arose  from  a  most  trifling  cause.  They  refused 
to  attend  prayers  and  recitations  on  account  of  a 
rain.  The  President  reports  that  he  walked  through 
it  "without  any  inconvenience,"  and  yet  they  de- 
clined to  attend  his  recitation,  and  resisted  a  sum- 
mons sent  by  him  through  the  Monitor.  This 
was  met  by  a  "  friendly  expostulation  "  in  the  Chapel 
on  the  part  of  the  Faculty,  and  the  affair  was  ter- 
minated. But  a  more  serious  disturbance  was  ahead. 
In  May  a  student  was  suspended,  and  this  led  to  a 
combination  not  to  attend  recitations  until  he  received 
a  hearing.  It  appears,  upon  future  investigation,  that 
he  was  innocent  of  the  offence  with  which  he  was 
charged.  A  leading  member  of  the  Board  interceded, 
and  by  his  mediation  a  committee  of  students  was 
permitted  to  appear  before  the  Faculty,  and  the 
student  was  allowed  a  hearing.  The  matter  was  sub- 
mitted to  the  Board.  They  condemn  the  intemperate 
and  misguided  proceedings  of  the  students  in  organiz- 
ing and  maintaining  a  rebellion  to  obtain  redress  for 
grievances,  whether  real  or  imaginary,  instead  of  seek- 
ing their  removal  by  the  constituted  authorities.  This 
is  a  sound  principle,  and  furnishes  a  safe  guide  for 
students  under  all  circumstances.  The  innocence  of 
the  student  was  clearly  established,  he  was  re-admitted 
to  his  class,  and  thus  peace  was  again  restored.  But 
the  Faculty  are  not  wholly  blameless.  A  mistake  was 
made,  an  innocent  man  was  punished,  and  thereby  the 
College  thrown  into  rebellion.  Why  did  he  not  have  the 
privilege  of  a  hearing  as  soon  as  suspicion  fastened 
upon  him  ?  Why  was  the  usage  of  the  College  in  this 
respect  ignored?  But  he  was  not  only  denied  this, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        141 

but  not  permitted  to  prove  his  innocence  by  witnesses. 
The  course  of  the  Faculty,  then,  was  a  practical  abo- 
lition of  a  principle;  an  innovation  upon  usages 
solemnly  recognized  ;  a  denial  of  justice  as  adminis- 
tered through  its  customary  channel,  and  an  odious 
and  degrading  discrimination  against  an  individual. 
The  young  are  not  as  the  old,  and  they  rarely  resort 
for  redress  of  wrongs  to  those  means  which  belong  to 
graver  counsels,  and  a  more  matured  experience. 

But  the  year  which  I  am  now  to  sketch,  the  year 
1827,  is  pregnant  with  events  far  more  serious.  On 
the  27th  of  February,  Dr.  Cooper  informed  the  Faculty 
that  a  committee  of  students  had  waited  upon  him, 
and  informed  him  that  a  large  majority  of  their 
whole  number  had  resolved  to  secede  from  Commons 
from  the  first  of  March.  This  was  indeed  a  fearful 
announcement.  After  full  discussion,  it  was  resolved 
to  consult  such  members  of  the  Board  as  were  in 
Town,  and  abide  by  their  advice.  Dr.  Cooper  made  a 
a  full  report  of  the  difficulty.  Pie  had  addressed  the 
students  in  the  chapel,  and  endeavored  to  persuade 
them  to  reconsider  the  matter,  and  return  to  their 
allegiance.  The  Faculty  had  to  do  their  duty,  and 
the  course  was  obvious.  They  were  informed  that 
there  was  no  alternative  left  but  to  suspend,  and 
report  for  expulsion  at  the  next  stated  meeting 
in  November,  all  those  students  who  persisted  in  the 
present  design.  The  Faculty  met  the  offence  boldly. 
After  the  resolution  of  suspension  was  formally 
announced,  many  engaged  in  the  combination  peti- 
tioned for  restoration  to  their  classes.  It  was  unani- 
mously resolved  that  no  student  of  the  Senior  Class 
9 


142        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

who  was  thus  engaged,  should  again  be  admitted  to 
the  College.     All  the  members  of  the  other  classes 
who  were  received,  were  required  to  sign  a  pledge  that 
they  would  not  enter  into,  or  countenance  in  any  way, 
any  future  combination  to  oppose  or  disobey  the  laws 
of  the  College.     The  storm  was  now  past.     There  was 
quiet   for  the  rest  of  the  session;  the  Examinations 
were  held  in  June,  and  the  Faculty  speak  well  of  them. 
The  College  assembled  in  October,  and  from  that  period 
to  the  close  of  the  year,  the  records  furnish  no  proof 
of  any  offence  whatever.     Let  me  now  advert  to  the 
proceedings  of  the  Board.    November  3,  Mr.  Vanuxem 
resigned  his  Professorship ;    and  at  the  same  meeting 
Mr.  Baker  gave  notice  of  the  resignation  of  his  Tutor- 
ship.    December  5,  Isaac  W.  Hayne  was  elected  Tutor 
of  Mathematics.       The   graduating   class   numbered 
twelve;   twenty-four  Seniors  were  expelled,  and  the 
members  of  the  other  classes  reported  for  expulsion 
were  remitted  to  the  tender  mercies  of  the  Faculty, 
to  do  with  them  as  in  their  judgment  they  thought 
best.     Dr.  Cooper  having  assumed,  in  addition  to  his 
present  duties,  the  Professorship  of  Mineralogy  with- 
out additional  compensation,  it  was  resolved  to  elect 
an  assistant  with  a  salary  of  five  hundred  dollars.     On 
going  into  a  ballot  for  that  purpose,  Kobert  Wilson 
Gibbes  was  duly  elected,  December  15th.     John  E. 
Davis  was  elected  Tutor,  December  18,   in  place  of 
Mr.  Baker.     The  year  has  now  closed,  and   it  was 
certainly  a  disastrous  one  to  the  College.     The  Faculty 
seem  to  have  done  their  full  duty,  and  are  entitled  to  all 
praise.    The  discipline  was  sternly  enforced — the  great- 
est harmony  pervaded  their  counsels,  and  they  gave  to 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        143 

all  their  acts  the  sanction  of  their  full  authority.  It 
was  certainly  a  time  of  trial,  and  they  were  deeply 
impressed  by  the  responsibilities  of  theft  position.  No 
blame  can  possibly  attach  to  them ;  but  the  spirit  of 
rebellion  had  Jmrst  forth  in  its  wild  fury,  large  num- 
bers of  students  were  lost,  and  distrust  seized  upon 
the  public  mind. 

I  shall  now  proceed  to  give  some  account  of  a  gen- 
tleman of  great  worth,  and  large  attainments  in  a 
particular  walk  of  science,  whose  name  even  is 
unknown  to  a  large  portion  of  my  readers.  He  was 
distinguished  for  his  modesty,  devoted  .himself  to  pur- 
$uits  which  at  the  time  were  not  properly  appreciated 
in  our  community,  and  left  the  College  for  his  distant 
home  at  the  North  upwards  of  thirty  years  ago.  I 
had  some  acquaintance  with  him,  have  distinct  im- 
pressions of  the  man,  and,  I  trust,  will  be  aided  thereby 
in  the  sketch  which  I  shall  now  give  of  him.  From 
the  memoir  of  his  friend,  Dr.  Isaac  Lea,  from 
the  records  of  the  Board  of  Tustees,  and  my  own 
recollections,  I  trust  I  shall  be  able  to  do  something 
like  justice  to  his  memory. 

Lardner  Yanuxem  was  born  in  the  city  of  Phila- 
delphia in  the  year  1792  or  1793.  He  was  the  son 
of  James  Yanuxem,  an  eminent  merchant.  His 
father  placed  him  in  his  counting  room,  but  soon 
perceived  that  his  son  was  engaged  in  pursuits  of  a 
far  different  nature.  Though  discharging  with  proper 
fidelity  the  duties  imposed  upon  him,  he  devoted  his 
leisure  hours  to  the  study  of  Chemistry,  Mineralogy, 
and  Geology.  The  father  was  not  backward  in 
encouraging  the  peculiar  taste  and  genius  of  his  son. 


144        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

He  was  now  permitted  to  take  a  course  of  Chemical 
lectures  in  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  and, 
pleased  with  his  progress,  he  sent  him  to  Paris,  where 
he  remained  three  years  at  the  School  of  Mines,  receiv- 
ing instruction  from  Broigniart,  the  .  Abbe  Hauy, 
Thenard  and  others.  He  was  a  great  favorite  with 
these  distinguished  savans,  and  Dr.  Lea  records  that 
when  he  visited  Paris  fourteen  years  afterwards,  they 
made  the  most  anxious  inquiries  in  respect  to  him, 
and  spoke  of  him  as  one  of  their  most  successful  and 
promising  students.  After  completing  his  studies  in 
Paris,  he  visited  some  of  the  most  interesting  portions 
of  France,  making  his  geological  excursions  chiefly  on 
foot.  Shortly  after  his  return  home,  he  was  intro- 
duced by  Dr.  Lea  to  Dr.  Cooper,  who  was  then  the 
Teacher  of  Chemistry,  Mineralogy  and  Geology  in  the 
South  Carolina  College.  Dr.  Cooper  had  indulged  the 
idea  for  some  time  that  the  interests  of  the  College 
demanded  the  establishment  of  a  separate  Professor- 
ship of  Geology  and  Mineralogy,  and  at  the  meeting 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  December  2d,  1820,  it  was 
resolved  unanimously  that  application  be  made  to  the 
Legislature,  at  its  next  session,  to  establish  such  a  Pro- 
fessorship, with  a  salary  of  one  thousand  dollars.  I 
am  not  entirely  certain,  but  I  think  that  Professor 
Vanuxem  took  part  in  the  instruction  of  the  College, 
as  an  adjunct  of  Dr.  Cooper,  before  the  resolution  was 
acted  on  by  the  Legislature.  Upon  the  elevation  of 
Dr.  Cooper  to  the  Presidency,  he  resigned  his  Profes- 
sorship of  Geology  and  Mineralogy,  and  December  3d, 
1821,  Mr.  Vanuxem  was  duly  elected  to  serve  for  one 
year,  with  a  salary  of  one  thousand  dollars.  With 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        145 

this  small  compensation  he  continued  to  labor  with 
great  industry  and  zeal  until  April  28th,  1824, 
when  he  tendered  his  letter  of  resignation,  to  take 
effect  on  the  3d  December  ensuing.  In  the  mean 
time,  however,  there  was  presented  a  prospect 
for  the  increase  of  his  salary,  and  November  30th, 
1824,  he  addressed  a  letter  to  the  Board,  in  which 
he  gives  the  reason  for  his  resignation,  and  suggests  a 
new  field  of  labor  for  himself,  which,  while  it  will 
bring  a  better  salary,  will,  as  he  conceives,  enhance 
very  much  the  value  of  his  services  to  the  jState. 
This  letter  is  important,  as  it  contains  the  first  sug- 
gestion of  a  Geological  and  Mineralogical  Survey  of 
the  State.  It  was  proposed  to  connect  it  with  the 
office  then  held  by  him.  He  asks  the  Board  before  it 
accepts  his  resignation,  to  consider  the  propriety  and 
expediency  of  making  application  to  the  Legislature 
for  that  purpose.  We  learn  from  the  letter  the  precise 
character  of  the  survey  which  he  proposed,  and  which 
was  partially  accomplished.  "  I  propose,'*says  he,  "  to 
make  a  thorough  examination  of  each  District  of  the 
State  as  to  its  rocks,  minerals,  and  fossils;  to  collect 
specimens  of  every  different  kind  that  comes  under 
notice  in  the  different  Districts,  and  to  arrange  the 
same  by  Districts  in  the  South  Carolina  College,  giving 
to  each  specimen  its  name  and  its  location-,  and  also 
to  mark  on  the  map  of  the  State  the  rocks  as  they 
exist,  and  such  valuable  minerals  as  may  have  been 
noticed."  The  Board  of  Trustees  looked  with  favor 
upon  the  scheme,  and  upon  its  recommendation  the 
Legislature  made  an  appropriation  for  two  years. 
The  survey  was  not  completed,  but  the  rocks  and 


146        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAKOLINA  COLLEGE. 

minerals  collected  amounted  to  upwards  of  five 
hundred,  and  were  deposited  by  him  in  the  Cabinet  of 
the  College. 

I  have  been  permitted  to  read  a  letter  from  Professor 
Vanuxem  to  Dr.  R.  W.  Gibbes,  dated  Bristol,  March 
29th,  1845,  and  from  it  I  make  the  following  extract: 
"  I  am  sorry  to  hear  from  Mr.  Tuomey,  that  the  collec- 
tion I  left  at  Columbia  of  the  only  year  given  to  the 
Survey  of  the  State,  has,  in  a  great  measure,  disap- 
peared ;  and  that  the  map  of  the  State,  colored  to  the 
exten£  of  the  parts  examined,  in  accordance  with  its 
rocks,  &c.,  and  which  I  nailed  to  the  wall  of  the 
lecture-room,  is  not  to  be  found." 

Professor  Vanuxem  continued  his  connection  with 
the  College  until  November  3d,  1827,  when  he  ten- 
dered his  resignation,  with  the  request  that  the  for- 
mality of  notice  be  dispensed  with,  "as  he  had  lately 
received  an  appointment  both  honorable  and  profit- 
able, and  his  services  were  immediately  required." 
The  request  was  granted,  and  thus  terminated  his 
useful  labors  in  the  College.  The  appointment  to 
which  allusion  is  here  made,  was  the  superin tendency 
of  a  gold  mine,  near  the  City  of  Mexico,  belonging  to 
a  Baltimore  Company.  He  repaired  to  the  spot,  and 
took  up  his  residence  at  the  mines.  He  satisfied  him- 
self that  it  could  not  be  worked  to  advantage,  and 
communicating  this  opinion  to  the  Company,  the  mine 
was  abandoned,  and  he  returned  to  his  native  city 
after  an  absence  of  eighteen  months.  He  purchased 
a  farm  near  Bristol,  to  which  he  retired  with  his 
family.  He  now  devoted  himself  to  agricultural  pur- 
suits, but  even  then  found  leisure  to  bring  around  him 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.         147 

a  choice  collection  of  minerals.  But  his  highest  glory 
was  yet  to  be  achieved.  The  knowledge  of  such  a 
man  must  be  brought  out  more  palpably  to  the  light 
of  day.  There  were  those  who,  amid  the  veil  of 
modesty  which  concealed  him  from  common  view, 
could  yet  perceive  his  sterling  worth  and  rich  endow- 
ments. He  was  solicited  by  Governor  Marcy  of  New 
York  to  take  part  in  the  Geological  Survey  of  that 
State.  To  that  great  labor  of  science  he  devoted 
himself  for  five  or  six  years.  All  who  are  competent 
to  form  an  opinion,  have  declared  that  he  executed 
his  task  with  unsurpassed  ability.  According  to  Lea, 
(Proc.  Acad.  Nat.  Scien.,  Philadelphia,  1858,  p.  218,) 
Vanuxem  was  the  first  to  recognise  that  the  whole 
alluvial,  tertiary  and  cretaceous  formations  of  this 
country  had  been  confounded  by  McClure,  under  the 
name  of  "Alluvium"  The  separation  of  these  great 
Geological  formations  from  one  another  by  Vanuxem, 
must  be  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  most  important 
steps  in  the  history  of  American  Geology ;  in  fact,  as 
the  very  foundation  of  Scientific  Geology  in  this  coun- 
try. This  important  step  was  the  result  of  the  careful 
study  of  these  formations  in  France,  and  an  equally 
careful  comparison  of  American  fossils  with  the 
French.  Like  all  important  discoveries  in  science, 
therefore,  it  was  made  under  the  guidance  of  the  true 
inductive  spirit.  The  views  of  Yanuxem  have  been 
confirmed,  first  by  Morton,  and  since  by  all  American 
Geologists;  and  from  year  to  year  new  explorations 
demonstrate  the  vast  extent  of  these  formations  in  the 
United  States. 

I  have  not  much  more  to  add.     He  was  through 


148        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

life  a  frequent  contributor  to  the  scientific  journals 
of  the  country,  and  in  the  announcement  of  his  death, 
Silliman's  journal  remarks  that,  "  American  science  has 
rarely  been  deprived  of  a  more  able  devotee  than  the 
late  Prof.  Lardner  Vanuxem."  He  died  at  his  farm 
near  Bristol,  January  25th,  1848,  in  the  56th  year  of  his 
age.  My  imperfect  memoir  is  concluded.  It  contains 
less  than  is  already  known  to  his  many  friends  at  the 
North;  but  it  will  be  pleasing  to  them  to  learn  that 
one  who  occupies  a  Chair  in  the  Institution  where  he 
labored  a  third  of  a  century  ago,  has  honestly  en- 
deavored to  perpetuate  his  name  and  his  fame  in  a 
distant  land. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

The  year  1828  is  remarkable  for  its  good  order. 
The  records  of  the  Faculty  give  but  one  offence  which 
was  worthy  of  discipline.  Considering  the  smallness 
of  the  numbers,  it  was  resolved  that  it  would  be  better 
not  to  publish  a  Catalogue  for  the  year.  The  Presi- 
dent, in  his  reports  to  the  Board,  speaks  in  highest 
terms  of  the  conduct  of  the  students,  and  their  general 
proficiency.  John  R.  Davis,  who  was  filling  tempo- 
rarily the  place  of  Tutor,  was  re-elected  November  28. 
The  Commons  system  now  attracted  the  special  atten- 
tion of  the  Board.  A  committee,  consisting  of  Chan- 
cellor DeSaussure,  the  Honorable  William  Harper, 
and  the  Honorable  W.  C.  Preston,  which  had  been 
appointed  at  a  previous  meeting,  made  a  long  report. 
It  is  an  able,  well-reasoned  and  thorough  discussion  of 
the  matter.  The  testimony  of  every  respectable  Col- 
lege in  the  country  is  adduced,  and  the  whole  body  of 
it  is  opposed  to  the  system.  The  committee  declare 
that, "  in  most  cases  where  the  system  of  College  dis- 
cipline has  obliged  the  students  to  board  in  Commons, 
discontent  and  disorder  have  followed,  and  wherever 
the  students  have  their  option  to  board  either  at 
Commons  or  at  private  houses,  order  and  satisfaction 
have  prevailed."  The  Board  resolved  that  the  stu- 
dents who  may  be  authorized  in  writing  by  their 
parents  and  guardians,  may  board  in  such  private 
families,  and  at  such  private  boarding  houses  within 


150        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

the  Town  of  Columbia,  as  may  be  licensed  in  writing 
by  the  Faculty. 

On  looking  at  the  proceedings  of  the  Faculty  for 
1829,  I  see  nothing  which  forbids  the  following  lan- 
guage of  Dr.  Cooper,  which  is  contained  in  his  report 
to  the  Board  of  Trustees,  dated  November  29  :  "  The 
affairs  of  the  College,  during  the  last  year,  have  gone 
on  much  as  usual.  The  usual  Course  of  Studies 
has  been  pursued,  and  the  usual  proficiency  made." 
It  is  worthy  of  mention  that  a  Mr.  Michaelowitz 
had  been  engaged  during  the  period  in  teaching 
Hebrew  and  French  to  Classes  in  the  College.  The 
Faculty,  in  November,  "  recommended  to  the  Board 
of  Trustees  the  establishment  of  a  provision  for  teach- 
ing the  Hebrew  and  Arabic  and  Modern  Languages, 
and  that  to  this  end,  a  Teacher  of  the  said  Languages 
be  attached  to  the  College;"  and  Mr.  Michaelowitz 
was  nominated  for  the  purpose.  The  measure  is 
strongly  urged  by  Dr.  Cooper  in  his  report.  A  reso- 
lution was  passed  requesting  the  Governor  to  apply  to 
the  Legislature  for  an  appropriation  of  one  thousand 
dollars  per  annum  as  a  salary  for  the  adjunct  Professor 
of  Chemistry,  Geology  and  Mineralogy,  the  compen- 
sation for  the  services  of  the  present  assistant  being 
regarded  wholly  inadequate.  The  last  act  of  the 
Board  for  the  year  was  the  appointment  of  Mr. 
Michaelowitz,  Teacher  of  Oriental  Literature,  and 
Modern  Languages,  with  a  salary  of  $600  per  annum. 

Lest  it  might  be  supposed  that  the  Latin  had  not  in 
that  day  the  prominence  to  which  it  is  entitled,  I  beg 
leave  to  give  the  following  resolutions  of  the  Faculty, 
passed  December  28  : 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        151 

"  Resolved  unanimously,  That  in  future  no  certificate 
shall  be  accepted  from  any  Teacher  unless  written  in 
Latin.  Also,  that  applicants  for  admission  shall 
address  themselves  in  writing  in  the  Latin  language 
to  the  Faculty,  and  that  this  exercise  shall  be  per- 
formed in  the  presence  of  the  Faculty." 

The  reader  will  remember  how  frequently  I  have 
had  to  record  in  these  pages,  disturbances  originat- 
ing in  the  Commons ;  and  that  with  the  view  of  pro- 
moting greater  peace  and  quiet,  the  Trustees,  in  1828, 
gave  permission  to  the  students,  under  certain  limita- 
tions, to  board  elsewhere.  These  limitations  would 
seem  to  be  entirely  proper.  The  permission  was  to 
be  asked  by  the  parent  or  guardian ;  students  were 
not  to  board  at  hotels  or  taverns,  and  the  houses  were 
to  be  licensed  by  the  Faculty.  What  more  could  be 
asked?  and  yet,  according  to  the  report  of  Dr.  Cooper, 
the  new  plan  "  produced  such  other  mischiefs  that  we 
must  conquer  them,  or  recur  to  the  former  arrange- 
ment, at  whatever  risk."  This,  then,  was  the  chief 
trouble  of  1830.  There  were  other  "  disturbances, 
dissatisfactions  and  mischievous  proceedings;  but, 
according  to  the  report,  none  more  than  may  be 
expected  from  one  hundred  and  fifteen  young  men, 
most  of  whom  have  been  very  negligently  managed, 
before  they  came  here."  So  writes  Dr.  Cooper,  and 
I  will  make  it  the  text  for  a  remark.  My  own  obser- 
vation satisfies  me  that  the  College  is  charged  with 
ruining  many  who  come  to  it  with  confirmed  habits  of 
idleness  and  immorality.  Parents  must  visit  the  sins 
of  their  sons  upon  some  one,  and  most  readily  will 


152        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

they  lay  them  upon  the  College  if  they  ever  breathed 
for  a  month  its  polluted  atmosphere.  I  grant  that  it 
is  sometimes  the  case  that  a  good  youth  is  injured  in 
College ;  but  it  is  rare.  If  he  comes  with  all  the 
defences  which  a  good  training  at  home  will  throw 
around  him,  it  is  never  to  be  expected  that  he  will 
fall  a  victim  to  evil  influences.  The  wise  counsels  of 
a  father,  the  affectionate  and  pious  lessons  of  a  mother, 
cannot  be  so  easily  forgotten.  There  is  certainly,  too, 
something  in  the  earnest  advice  and  constant  admoni- 
tion of  his  instructors  ;  and,  moreover,  there  is  a  large 
number  among  his  fellow  students  and  daily  associates 
who  sympathise  with  him  in  his  virtuous  affections. 
I  insist,  then,  that  it  is  no  terrible  ordeal  to  a 
good  youth ;  that  the  dangers  are  grossly  exagge- 
rated ;  and  that  every  parent  who  has  done  his 
duty  at  home,  and  sends  a  virtuous  boy  to  College, 
may  expect  him  to  return  with  his  intellect  enlarged 
and  expanded,  and  his  morals  strengthened  and 
confirmed.  Could  I  believe  that  a  College  was  a 
school  of  vice,  that  it  was  a  mighty  whirlpool  which 
engulfed  thousands  of  the  innocent  and  unsuspecting,  I 
would  warn  every  parent  against  it.  But,  whatever 
may  be  it  faults,  its  encourages  an  elevated  ambition  ; 
it  rebukes  every  thing  that  is  low  and  despicable,  and 
fosters  the  very  virtues  which,  in  their  proper  develop- 
ment, are  sure  to  build  up  a  manly  And  noble 
character.  I  may  surprise  some  of  my  readers,  but  I 
hesitate  not  to  declare  that  the  College  saves  far  more 
than  it  ruins  ;  that  its  system,  its  hopes,  its  rewards, 
its  discipline,  its  whole  body  of  influences,  not  unfre- 
quently  exert  a  wholesome  effect  upon  the  wild  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        153 

thoughtless  youth,  and  accomplish  a  work  to  which 
the  parent  is  incompetent.  And  how  can  it  be  other- 
wise ?  Would  it  not  be  strange  if  it  were  not  so  ? 
Surely  there  must  be  something  in  that  system  which 
cultivates  habits  of  punctuality  and  promptitude 
in  the  discharge  of  duty ;  which  furnishes  regular 
employment;  which  holds  up  to  the  admiring  eye 
of  youth  the  priceless  gem  of  knowledge,  that  they 
may  strive  for  it,  and  make  it  their  own;  which  affords 
as  guides,  men  who  have  travelled  the  way,  and  there- 
fore know  all  its  devious  wanderings,  and  who,  day 
by  day,  and  in  every  possible  form,  inculcate  those 
great  truths  which  lie  at  the  basis  of  all  excellence, 
and  constitute  alike  the  glory  of  States,  and  the  beauty 
of  individual  character.  If  there  be  nothing  in  all  this, 
then  all  human  contrivances  for  the  ends  of  educa- 
tion are  worse  than  useless;  and  Schools,  Academies, 
Colleges,  and  Universities,  should  be  looked  upon  as 
engines  of  mischief,  and  fall  beneath  the  mighty  tread 
of  modern  civilization.  The  spirit  of  fault-finding  ex- 
hibited by  some  persons,  reminds  me  of  the  way  in 
which  Lord  Peter  treated  his  father's  will  in  the 
"Tale  of  the  Tub."  Determined  to  discover  the  word 
"shoulder-knot,"  he  picks  it  out  letter  by  letter, 
and  is  even  at  last  obliged,  to  substitute  c  for  k  in 
the  orthography. 

There  are  in  College  life  temptations  to  dissipation  ; 
but  these  temptations  are  at  hand  at  every  step  of  the 
journey  of  life,  and  no  where  else,  perhaps,  are  they 
met  by  more  powerful  counteracting  influences.  A 
judicious  writer  of  former  times,  in  a  defence  of  female 
education  remarks,  that  the  woman  who  would  be 


154        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

spoiled  by  being  educated,  would  be  spoiled  any  how ; 
and  I  think  the  remark  may  be  extended  to  the  youth 
wiio  are  spoiled  by  being  sent  to  College.  I  would 
hold  all  public  functionaries  to  a  strict  responsiblity ; 
but  let  not  the  community  expect  impossibilities  of  a 
Faculty.  In  as  large  a  number  as  are  assembled  in 
the  walls,  there  must  be  some  who  have  no  regard  for 
the  laws.  It  has  been  so  under  every  administration, 
and  will  so  continue  in  all  time  to  come.  A  College 
perfect  in  all  respects,  where  the  love  of  study  per- 
vades the  bosoms  of  all,  and  where  the  conduct  is 
regulated  by  the  most  rigid  exactions  of  morality,  is 
nothing  less  than  an  Utopian  dream.  The  Professors 
are  not  mere  spiritual  existences,  but  men  ;  and  like 
all  their  species,  they  must  eat  and  sleep,  and  be 
obedient  to  nature.  Refreshment  and  repose  are  as 
necessary  to  them  as  to  others.  Some  persons  seem 
to  forget  this.  I  was  present  when  the  pews  of  a 
Church  were  about  being  distributed,  and  it  was  pro- 
posed to  assign  the  pew  immediately  under  the  pulpit 
to  the  family  of  the  clergyman.  The  late  Dr.  Henry 
objected,  with  the  remark,  that  the  wives  and  daughters 
of  ministers  had  necks  as  well  as  other  people — a  plain 
truth  which,  for  the  moment,  seemed  to  have  been  lost 
sight  of.  The  reader  will  make  the  application.  Dr. 
Cooper,  in  his  last  report  for  the  year,  truly  says : "  that 
the  discipline  of  the  College  is  the  only  circumstance  of 
difficulty  attending  the  duties  of  the  Faculty.  There 
is  no  season  of  the  year  in  which  it  does  not  come 
before  them  as  a  subject  of  intense  anxiety,  on  which 
their  own  comfort,  as  well  as  the  welfare  of  the  College, 
essentially  depends.  No  one  can  know  the  facts,  or 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        155 

be  alive  to  the  remedies,  or  be  in  any  degree  so 
anxious  on  this  head,  as  the  Faculty." 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Board,  November  24,  Tutor 
Davis  gave  notice  of  resignation. 

The  year  1831  is  an  eventful  one — not  that  it 
abounded  in  disorder — not  that  it  brought  great 
changes  in  the  internal  polity  and  regulations  of  the 
College,  but  eventful  in  its  bearing  upon  the  history 
and  fortunes  of  the  distinguished  individual  who  had 
for  so  many  years  filled  the  Presidency.  The  first 
meeting  of  the  Board  was  on  the  30th  of  November. 
Tutor  Hayne  then  gave  notice  that  he  would  resign 
his  office  on  the  1st  of  January  succeeding.  Dr. 
Cooper,  in  his  report,  says  that  the  business  of  the 
College  has  gone  on  as  usual;  that  the  number  of 
students  is  114,  and  that  their  conduct  is  better  than 
formerly.  December  3d,  Lewis  R.  Gibbes  was  elected 
Tutor.  The  most  interesting  event  of  the  year  is  the 
adoption  of  the  following  resolution  by  the  House  of 
Representatives,  which  was  communicated  to  the 
Board  by  the  Governor : 

IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES, 

December  7th,  1831. 

Resolved,  That  in  the  opinion  of  this  House  it  is 
expedient  that  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  South 
Carolina  College  do  forthwith  investigate  the  conduct 
of  Dr.  Cooper,  as  President  of  the  South  Carolina  Col- 
lege, and  if  they  find  that  his  continuance  in  office 
defeats  the  ends  and  aims  of  the  Institution,  that  they 
be  requested  to  remove  him.  The  following  resolu- 
tion was  adopted  by  the  Board :  Whereas,  it  is  alledged 


156        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

that  Dr.  Cooper  has,  by  the  promulgation  of  certain 
opinions,  become  odious  to  a  large  and  respectable 
portion  of  the  people  of  this  State,  and  the  College  has 
sustained  injury  from  this  circumstance:  Resolved, 
That  the  Board  proceed  to  -inquire  whether  Dr. 
Cooper  has  wilfully  and  unneccessarily  promulgated 
any  opinions  which  are  justly  offensive  to  any  con- 
siderable portion  of  the  people  of  this  State ;  whether 
from  them  any  injury  has  resulted  to  the  College  ; 
whether  this  injury  can  be  remedied  without  the 
removal  of  Dr.  Cooper,  and  whether  the  conduct  of 
Dr.  Cooper  in  the  premises  has  been  such  as  to  consti- 
tute misconduct  for  which  he  should  be  removed. 
The  matter  was  referred  to  a  Committee  of  five,  with 
instructions  to  investigate  what  charges  are  made 
against  Dr.  Cooper,  and  report  to  the  Board  specifica- 
tions of  the  charges  made  against  him.  The  Commit- 
tee were  also  instructed  to  furnish  Dr.  Cooper  with  a 
copy  of  the  charges  and  specifications.  The  Com- 
mittee made  their  report  on  the  14th  December,  and 
Dr.  Cooper  at  the  same  time  transmitted  an  elaborate 
reply.  The  further  consideration  of  the  charges  was 
postponed  until  the  meeting  in  May,  to  allow  Dr. 
Cooper  to  procure  the  attendance  of  certain  witnesses. 
Thus  terminated  the  year.  The  President  was  arraigned, 
not  only  before  the  Board  of  Trustees,  but  at  the  bar 
of  public  opinion.  From  the  very  nature  of  the  issues, 
every  man  felt  himself  a  party.  The  first  gun  had 
been  fired,  and  blood  had  been  spilt.  There  was  to 
be  no  compromise;  time  and  reflection  were  only  to 
widen  the  breach,  and  to  intensify  the  feeling  of 
opposition.  The  College  had  become  more  than  ever 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        157 

an  object  of  interest,  and  the  cry  of  " revolution,"  "re- 
organization," was  now  beginning  to  be  heard  through- 
out the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land. 

The  proceedings  of  the  Faculty  for  1832  are  without 
special  interest.  On  turning  to  the  records  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  I  perceive  that  they  assembled  on 
the  16th  of  May,  and  that  the  case  of  Dr.  Cooper  was 
resumed,  but  it  was  resolved  that  it  would  be  unad- 
visable  to  proceed  with  so  small  a  quorum.  A 
Committee  was  appointed  for  the  purpose  of  taking  the 
testimony  of  the  witnesses  in  attendance,  and  for 
taking  by  interrogatory  the  testimony  of  those  absent 
witnesses  whose  names  had  been  given  to  the  Board. 
The  order  of  the  College  seems  to  have  been  good. 
Dr.  Cooper,  in  his  report  of  November,  assures  the 
Board  that  since  their  last  meeting  there  has  been 
less  riot  and  disturbance  within  the  walls  than  at  any 
former  period.  The  Catalogue  of  Students  for  the 
year  amounted  to  107,  and  of  these  14  had  taken 
dismissions.  November  28th,  Professor  Henry  gave 
notice  of  the  resignation  of  his  Chair,  to  take  effect  in 
twelve  months.  December  4th,  the  Board  proceeded 
to  the  investigation  of  the  charges  against  Dr.  Cooper, 
being  convened  at  the  Hall  of  the  House  of  Represen- 
tatives. Dr.  Cooper  was  present.  The  testimony 
taken  by  commission  was  read,  and  he  commenced  his 
very  elaborate  defence.  At  an  adjourned  meeting  of 
December  5th,  he  concluded  it.  The  Board  again 
convened  at  the  College  Library  on  the  8th,  and 
though  there  was  a  strong  dissenting  opinion,  the 
trial  was  terminated  by  the  adoption  of  the  following 
resolution : 
10 


158        HISTOKY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Resolved,  That  no  charges  against  Dr.  Cooper, 
showing  th'at  his  continuance  in  office  defeats  the  ends 
and  aims  of  the  Institution,  or  authorizing  his  removal, 
have  been  substantiated  by  proof,  and  that  the  charges 
against  him  be  therefore  dismissed.  December  llth, 
Edward  "W.  Johnston  was  elected  Teacher  of  Modern 
Languages. 

The  Board,  as  has  just  been  stated,  had  disposed  of 
the  charges  against  Dr.  Cooper;  but  its  action  served 
not  to  remove  the  opposition  to  him,  and  to  re-instate 
him  in  the  public  confidence.  The  sentiment  was 
strong  and  deep,  and  his  connection  with  the  College 
could  not  long  be  preserved.  Before  I  proceed  further 
with  its  history,  it  is  proper  for  me  to  add,  that  at  the 
May  meeting  of  the  Board  in  1833,  a  Committee  of 
three  was  appointed  to  wait  upon  Professor  Henry, 
and  request  him  to  withdraw  his  letter  of  resignation. 
At  the  meeting  of  November  27,  Dr.  Cooper  ex- 
pressed to  the  Board  his  willingness  to  resign  the  office 
of  Presidency  with  the  view  of  opening  a  Law  School  in 
Columbia,  provided  the  Board  would  retain  him  as  a 
Chemical  lecturer  at  the  usual  place  and  times,  and  in 
all  respects  as  at  present,  with  the  salary  of  a  Profes- 
sor, and  the  assistance  of  Dr.  Gibbes.  The  Board 
adopted  the  main  proposition;  that  is,  that  he  resign 
the  Presidency,  and  continue  as  a  lecturer,  and  a 
Committee  was  appointed  to  confer  with  him  as  to  the 
terms  on  which  he  shall  be  retained,  and  the  duties 
he  shall  perform.  November  29,  the  Committee 
reported  in  substance  as  follows : — That  they  have  had 
a  conference  with  Dr.  Cooper,  and  that  he  is  desirous 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        159 

of  vacating  the  Presidential  Chair  on  the  1st  of 
January  next,  and  to  confine  himself  to  lectures  on 
Chemistry  and  Mineralogy  at  the  times  and  places 
heretofore  used;  that  in  consequence  of  his  advanced 
age  he  be  allowed  a  competent  assistant;  and  they 
conclude  with  the  following  resolutions : 

1st.  That  the  resignation  of  Dr.  Cooper,  as  Presi- 
dent of  the  College,  and  his  proposition  to  vacate  that 
chair  on  the  1st  of  January,  be  accepted. 

2d.  That  Dr.  Cooper  be  appointed  Lecturer  on 
Chemistry  and  Mineralogy  in  the  College,  to  take  date 
from  the  said  first  of  January,  and  that  he  be  from 
thenceforth  exempted  from  all  agency  in  the  govern- 
ment of  the  College,  and  that  he  receive  a  salary  of 
two  thousand  dollars  as  a  compensation  thereof. 

3d.  That  Dr.  Gibbes  assist  Dr.  Cooper  at  the  said 
Lectures  as  heretofore. 

4th.  That  Dr.  Cooper  shall  continue  to  reside  in 
the  building  which  he  now  occupies  until  the  1st  day 
of  April  next,  unless  it  shall  suit  his  convenience  to 
remove  at  an  earlier  period. 

The  report  and  resolutions  were  adopted.  Profes- 
sor Henry  was  appointed  President  pro  tempore  of  the 
College,  from  the  1st  day  of  January  next.  A  Com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  inquire  if  any  permanent 
improvements  had  been  made  by  Dr.  Cooper  upon  the 
President's  lot,  with  the  view  of  re-imbursing  him  if 
any  such  had  been  made.  At  a  subsequent  meeting 
Dr.  Cooper  was  paid  a  certain  sum,  in  full  satisfaction 
for  his  improvements. 


160        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Thus  matters  were  left  at  the  close  of  the  year 
1833;  but  the  demands  of  public  opinion  were  not 
satisfied.  The  Trustees,  by  formal  resolution,  had 
spoken  in  language  of  extravagant  compliment  of  the 
performances  of  the  large  and  respectable  graduating 
class  at  the  Commencement,  and  had  declared  that  on 
no  former  occasion  had  they  witnessed  more  satisfac- 
tory evidences  of  the  care  and  attention  of  the  Faculty 
of  the  College,  and  of  the  assiduity  and  scholarship  of 
the  young  gentlemen  themselves;  but  all  this  would 
not  suffice.  The  College  had  lost  the  confidence  of 
the  people ;  it  lived  upon  their  breath,  and  it  must  die 
if  that  breath  was  withheld.  The  cry  of  "revolution," 
"re-organization,"  was  again  to  be  heard  echoing  and 
re-echoing  from  the  mountains  to  the  sea-board.  It  is 
clear  to  my  mind  that  the  majority  of  the  Board  were 
anxious  to  save  the  Faculty,  if  possible,  and  that  the 
final  action  was  prompted  by  that  strong  voice,  which 
in  our  country  at  least,  never  speaks  without  being 
obeyed;  I  mean  the  voice  of  the  people.  The  Board 
had  its  first  meeting  for  the  year  1834,  November 
26th.  The  year  was  nearly  closed;  Dr.  Cooper  had 
been  discharging  the  duties  of  a  Professor  since 
January;  another  had  been  placed  temporarily  at  the 
head  of  the  College,  and  every  opportunity  had  been 
allowed  for  ascertaining  the  public  sentiment.  It  was 
apparent  that  something  more  had  to  be  done.  The 
College  could  not  prosper  under  the  present  arrange- 
ment. The  emergency  was  pressing,  and  the  action 
must  be  prompt.  The  College  was  tottering  to  its 
very  basis,  and  must  soon  fall,  unless  supported.  A 
Committee  of  eight  was  appointed  to  inquire  into  its 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        161 

present  state  and  condition,  and  if  it -be  in  a  depressed 
condition,  into  the  causes  which  have  led  to  this 
depression,  and  the  best  means  for  re-establishing  the 
interests  of  the  Institution.  The  reader  will  pardon 
me,  but  I  cannot  help  remarking,  that  on  looking  over 
the  list  of  that  Committee,  a  feeling  of  inexpressible 
sadness  comes  over  me.  But  little  more  than  twenty- 
four  years  have  passed.  The^ Committee  consisted  of 
eight  of  the  most  distinguished  men  of  the  State. 
They  were  rejoicing  in  health  and  life,  and  were  the 
glory  and  admiration  of  Carolina.  They  are  all  gone ; 
gone  to  that  land,  "from  whose  bourn  no  traveller  re- 
turns," and  Dr.  Cooper  and  the  Professors,  they  too  have 
paid  the  great  debt  of  nature.  Of  that  body,  the  Investi- 
gating Committee  and  the  officers  of  the  Faculty,  but 
two  remain;  the  Assistant  Professor  of  Chemistry, 
Dr.  R.  W.  Gibbes,  and  Professor  Gibbes  of  Charleston. 
The  Committee  reported,  and  after  full  discussion  it 
was  resolved,  at  the  meeting  of  December  3d,  that  the 
President,  Professors  and  Instructors  of  the  College,  be 
requested  to  resign  for  the  purpose  of  having  the 
vacancy  filled  by  such  persons  as  the  Trustees  may 
hereafter  elect;  and  that  a  Committee  of  three  be 
appointed  to  ascertain  whether  it  be  practicable  to 
continue  the  exercises  of  the  College  by  some  tempo- 
rary arrangement  until  Professors  can  be  regularly 
elected,  and  also  to  ascertain  and  report  whether  it 
would  be  practicable  to  elect  any  of  the  Professors  at 
this  time,  or  whether  it  would  be  expedient  so  to  do. 
December  9th,  the  following  officers  tendered  their 
resignations:  Dr.  Cooper,  Professor  Nott,  Professor 
Wallace,  Professor  Park,  Dr.  It.  W.  Gibbes,  and  Lewis 


162        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

K.  Gibbes,  Tutor.  Dr.  Henry,  acting  President,  made 
a  communication  to  the  effect,  that  in  compliance  with 
his  previous  letter  of  resignation,  his  connection  with 
the  College  would  terminate  on  the  1st  of  January 
next.  The  Tutorships  were  abolished  for  the  present, 
and  the  Professorships  were  re-organized.  It  was  also 
resolved  that  the  President  and  Professors  shall  hold 
their  offices  during  the  pleasure  of  the  Board.  Dr. 
Gibbes  was  appointed  to  the  department  of  Chemistry 
and  Mineralogy  until  the  vacation  in  July,  and  Tutor 
Lewis  E.  Gibbes  was  appointed  to  the  Mathematical 
Chair  until  the  acceptance  of  office,  and  the  arrival  of 
the  Professor.  Dr.  Park  was  appointed  Treasurer  and 
Librarian.  December  12th,  the  Board  proceeded  to 
the  elections.  The  Chair  of  Logic  and  Belles  Letters 
was  filled  by  the  election  of  Professor  Nott,  and  the 
Chairs  of  Political  Economy  and  History,  of  Greek 
and  Koman  Literature,  and  of  Mathematics,  Mechani- 
cal Philosophy  and  Astronomy,  were  also  filled,  but 
the  persons  elected  declined  acceptance.  R.  W. 
Gibbes  and  Lewis  R.  Gibbes  were,  by  resolution,  con- 
stituted part  of  the  Faculty.  December  15th,  the 
degree  of  Doctor  of  Laws  was  conferred  on  Dr.  Cooper, 
and  that  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  on  Dr.  Henry.  De- 
cember 17th,  a  Committee  was  appointed  to  make 
temporary  arrangements  for  continuing  the  College 
exercises. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

I  propose  now  to  present  Dr.  Cooper  more  distinctly 
to  my  readers.  To  this  notice  he  is  eminently  en- 
titled, and  I  shall  endeavor  to  bring  to  the  discussion 
a  spirit  of  entire  candor  and  impartiality.  He  was 
born  in  London,  October  22,  1759.  He  was  educated 
at  Oxford.  Having  taken  a  position  in  reference  to 
French  politics,  and  published  a  pamphlet  in  reply  to 
Burke,  he  left  England  under  a  threat  of  prosecution, 
and  took  up  his  residence  in  Northumberland,  Penn- 
sylvania, where  he  met  his  friend  Dr.  Priestley. 
Upon  his  arrival  among  us,  he  found  the  country  in  a 
state  of  high  political  excitement,  and  taking  part  in 
it,  he  was  tried  for  a  libel  under  the  sedition  law,  and 
sentenced  to  six  months'  imprisonment,  and  a  fine  of 
four  hundred  dollars.  In  1806,  he  was  appointed  one 
of  the  Judges  of  the  Pennsylvania  Common  Pleas 
Districts,  from  which  office  he  was  removed  by  Gov. 
Snyder  in  1811,  at  the  request  of  the  Legislature. 
He  held  successively  the  Professorship  of  Chemistry 
at  Dickinson  College,  Carlisle,  and  of  Chemistry  and 
Mineralogy  in  the  University  of  Pennsylvania.  De- 
cember 3,  1819,  he  was  elected  to  fill  for  one  year  the 
Chair  of  Chemistry  in  the  South  Carolina  College, 
made  vacant  by  the  death  of  Professor  Smith.  On 
the  15th  December,  1820,  he  was  elected  President 
pro  tempore,  and  December  1,  1821,  was  permanently 
elected.  December  3,  1834,  his  resignation  was  re- 
quested, and  he  was  disconnected  with  the  College. 


164        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

His  last  days  were  spent  in  editing  and  publishing  the 
Statutes  of  the  State  —  a  labor  which  was  assigned  him 
by  the  General  Assembly.  He  died  at  Columbia,  May 


A  difficult  task  is  now  before  me  ;  I  am  to  treat  of 
his  intellectual  character,  of  his  genius,  his  acquire- 
ments, his  peculiar  qualifications  for  the  Presidency 
of  the  College  ;  and  lastly  to  present  him  as  a  man,  to 
exhibit  him  in  his  private,  personal  and  social  rela- 
tions. No  man  of  his  time  was  more  generally  known 
to  the  people  of  the  State.  Of  an  eager,  restless  spirit, 
always  anxious  to  take  part  in  every  thing  of  moment 
which  was  passing  around  him,  of  resolute  and  deter- 
mined cast  of  character,  with  great  vigor  of  under- 
standing, combined  with  varied  learning,  it  was 
impossible  that  such  a  man  should  not  be  known  to 
his  contemporaries,  and  leave  behind  him  fixed  and 
positive  impressions.  My  estimate  of  him,  perhaps, 
is  somewhat  different  from  that  which  prevails 
generally;  but  eighteen  years  have  elapsed  since  his 
death,  and  nearly  all  of  those  —  I  believe  there  are  but 
two  exceptions  —  with  whom  he  was  intimately  asso- 
ciated, have  passed  away.  The  prejudices  of  enemies, 
the  partialities  of  friends,  no  longer  exert  an  influence. 
The  passions  of  the  day  are  gone  forever;  the  grave 
has  silenced  alike  the  voice  of  censure,  and  of  praise. 
Another  generation  has  succeeded,  and  the  calm 
inquiry  of  truth  and  justice  can  alone  have  interest. 

What,  then,  is  the  intellectual  character  of  Dr. 
Cooper  ?  what  is  the  peculiar  nature  of  his  genius  ? 
I  will  be  understood  when  I  say  that  his  understand- 
ing was  strong  and  vigorous.  He  had  great  acuteness, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        165 

and  his  perceptions  were  clear  and  well-defined.  He 
had  wonderful  facility  in  taking  hold  of  the  thoughts 
of  others,  and  appropriating  them  to  his  own  purposes. 
His  mind  had  great  activity,  was  always  on  the  search, 
and  nothing  of  value  which  was  thrown  out  by  others 
escaped  him.  But  it  was  not  a  blind  obedience  ;  he 
subjected  it  to  the  crucible  of  his  own  reason,  to  the  test 
of  personal  experiment.  He  had  in  largest  measure 
the  element  of  independence,  and  in  the  end  his 
opinions  were  his  own.  Many  of  my  readers  will  y 
feel  surprise  when  I  declare  that  he  had  no  very  high 
original  powers.  It  is  true  that  on  many  subjects  he 
differed  from  those  around  him,  and  that  he  entertained 
opinions  entirely  opposed  to  the  settled  convictions  of 
the  community  where  his  lot  was  cast.  But  in  these 
instances  he  was  not  in  advance,  but  leMnd  the  age. 
He  could  not  lead  opinion,  he  could  not  correct  the 
blunders  and  errors  of  the  day,  exhibit  the  weakness 
and  fallacy  of  a  vicious  philosophy,  and  point  to  the 
way  which  conducts  to  a  nobler  truth  and  a  higher 
knowledge.  He  had  none  of  the  qualities  of  a  pioneer. 
He  had  to  deal  with  the  present — the  future  to  him 
was  a  dark  void ;  his  view  was  restricted  to  the  actual 
moment ;  he  had,  then,  no  prophetic  power : 

"  The  vision  and  the  faculty  divine" 

were  entirely  denied  him.     In  proof  of  what  I  have  said,    \ 
I  remark  that  if  we  were  to  examine  one  by  one  all  those ' 
views  expressed  by  Dr.  Cooper  on  whatever  subject 
which  might  be  claimed  as  original,  it  would  result  in 
the  conclusion  that  there  is  nothing  of  value  in  them. 
This  is  true,  I  believe,  without  exception.     Whether 


166        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

he  writes  upon  the  Mosaic  Cosmogony,  or  the  Chris- 
tian Revelation ;  or  whether  he  offers  a  contribution  to 
Chemistry,  or  any  other  branch  of  the  sciences,  or  to 
Political  Economy,  nothing  is  easier  than  to  expose 
the  shallowness  of  his  philosophy,  and  the  inconclusive- 
ness  of  his  reasoning.  Indeed,  I  may  say,  that  when 
he  makes  any  great  departure  from  the  common  track, 
his  suggestions  and  speculations  are  wanting  even  in 
plausibility,  and  are  not  therefore  of  a  nature  to  impose 
even  upon  the  superficial.  Some  minds  are  cast  in 
the  mould  of  Columbus,  and  fitted  to  make  voyages  of 
discovery,  while  the  vast  multitude,  if  they  venture 
out  upon  the  unexplored  ocean,  are  lost  amid  the 
rocks  and  quicksands.  From  what  has  been  said,  the 
reader  will  perceive  that  I  do  not  give  to  Dr.  Cooper 
the  highest  order  of  intellect.  He  had  a  marvellous 
capacity,  and  his  enthusiasm  in  the  cause  of  learning 
knew  no  bounds.  But  what  was  his  genius?  I  use 
the  word  in  the  sense  of  Dry  den ;  that  is,  the  disposi- 
tion of  nature  by  which  any  one  is  qualified  for  some 
peculiar  employment.  His  genius  was  eminently 
practical — utilitarian.  He  looked  upon  man  very 
much  as  an  animal,  and  believed  that  the  frame-work 
of  society  was  designed  to  provide  for  his  physical 
wants  and  necessities.  As  in  man  he  saw  nothing 
but  the  animal,  so  in  the  objects  of  knowledge  he  saw 
nothing  but  external  nature.  Of  man  in  his  higher 
nature,  as  a  being  of  immortal  powers,  with  aspira- 
tions reaching  into  a  never-ending  futurity,  he  had  no 
just  conception.  For  those  pursuits,  then,  which  are 
not  immediately  connected  with  the  bodily  wants, 
he  had  no  taste.  On  the  contrary,  he  denied  to  them 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        167 

all  claim  to  attention.  He  thought  that  all  time 
devoted  to  them  was  just  so  much  thrown  away.  His 
mind  was  objective.  For  Metaphysical  and  Ethical 
investigations,  he  had  perfect  contempt.  In  his  report 
to  the  Board  of  Trustees,  April  1823,  he  remarks  in 
reference  to  a  proposition  made  at  a  previous  meeting, 
that  he  should  teach  Metaphysics,  "that  he  professes 
himself  qualified  and  competent  to  teach  Metaphysics, 
having  devoted  much  more  time  to  that  very  un- 
satisfactory study  than  most  men ;  so  much  so  as  to 
be  fully  persuaded  that  it  is  not  worth  the  time 
required  to  be  bestowed  upon  it."  He  proposes  to 
substitute  a  course  of  Political  Economy  for  it.  It  is 
matter  of  history  that  a  Committee  was  appointed  at 
his  suggestion  to  report  upon  the  propriety  of  abolish- 
ing the  study  altogether.  And  so,  likewise,  he  had 
no  sympathy  in  Ethical  inquiries.  He  estimated 
everything  by  its  temporal  value.  I  would  say  nothing 
against  the  utilitarian  philosophy  in  its  just  and 
higher  sense ;  against  that  philosophy  which  finds 
utility  in  the  cultivation  of  all  the  intellectual  facul- 
ties, and  which  thus  augments  the  amount  of 
our  rational  pleasures;  that  philosophy  which  per- 
ceives a  utility  in  the  cultivation  of  our  moral  powers, 
by  which  our  sense  of  obligation  is  confirmed  and 
strengthened,  and  our  happiness  infinitely  increased ; 
in  short,  which  encourages  all  the  creations  of  genius, 
and  perceives  a  purpose, — a  use  in  all  which  be- 
longs to  the  domain  of  the  ideal,  the  beautiful,  the 
imaginative,  as  well  as  practical.  This,  however,  was 
not  the  philosophy  of  Dr.  Cooper.  I  may  say  that  it 
was  partial,  incomplete,  contracted.  It  was  not  co-ex- 


168        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

tensive  with,  the  nature  of  the  soul,  and  was  therefore 
wanting  in  humanity.  May  I  not  say,  then,  that  it 
was  cold  and  forbidding,  and  could  not  touch  the  heart. 
His  mind  was  defective  in  the  genuine  philosophic 
element ;  he  was  no  great  generalizer.  He  abounded 
in  facts,  and  the  use  which  he  made  of  them  proved 
that  he  was  an  acute,  rather  than  a  great  thinker. 
Compared  with  his  friend  Priestley,  I  would  remark 
that  they  were  very  similar,  though  Cooper  was  de- 
cidedly inferior.  The  name  of  one  is  linked  forever 
with  the  science  of  Chemistry,  while  the  other  has 
left  nothing  behind  him. 

But  I  am  to  speak  somewhat  particularly  of  his  ac- 
quirements. That  they  were  varied  and  extensive  can- 
not be  questioned.  His  mind  had  ranged  pretty  well 
over  the  broad  surface  of  thought  and  knowledge,  and 
had  gathered  something  at  every  step.  But,  as  I  have 
previously  said,  he  had  his  peculiar  tastes,  and  of  cer- 
tain fields  took  a  mere  glance,  and  could  only  say 
that  he  had  seen  them.  Others  were  inviting;  he 
walked  carefully  over  them,  and  carried  some  of  their 
richest  treasures  away.  He  was  a  great  reader,  had  a 
fine  memory,  and  forgot  little  that  was  worth  remem- 
bering. He  was  not  entirely  ignorant  of  anything 
which  might  become  the  topic  of  discussion  in  the 
circle  of  educated  gentlemen.  He  was  a  man  of  infor- 
mation, rather  than  of  learning.  I  do  not  mean  by 
this  to  intimate  that  he  had  solid  attainments  in 
nothing ;  but  that  his  knowledge  was  general,  and  that 
even  in  those  inquiries  to  which  he  had  devoted  his 
largest  attention,  depths  had  been  reached  by  others 
to  which  he  had  never  attained.  There  is,  no  doubt, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        169 

force  in  the  remark,  that  he  may  have  failed  in  reach- 
ing the  highest  excellence  in  any  one  department  of 
knowledge,  because  his  attention  was  divided  among 
so  many.  This  is  certainly  fatal  to  success  with  most 
minds.  It  has  not  been  so  with  all  whose  pursuits  were 
equally  diversified.  Paschal  and  Leibnitz,  and  Sir 
William  Hamilton,  left  the  impress  of  genius  in  every 
field  where  they  labored ;  and  Priestley  and  Franklin, 
more  kindred  spirits,  have  in  the  midst  of  most  distract- 
ing pursuits,  secured  immortality.  Dr.  Cooper's  largest 
attainments  were  in  Chemistry  and  the  cognate  Sciences, 
Law,  Medicine  and  Political  Philosophy.  His  prin- 
cipal publications  are,  a  "  Translation  of  the  Institutes 
of  Justinian,"  his  "  Translation  of  Broussais,"  his 
"  Medical  Jurisprudence,"  "  The  Emporium  of  Arts 
and  Sciences,"  and  his  "  Lectures  on  the  Elements  of 
Political  Economy."  Besides  these,  I  may  mention 
his  elaborate  "  Essay  on  the  Pentateuch,"  and  any 
number  of  pamphlets,  religious  and  political.  None 
of  these  can  live ;  indeed,  they  are  long  since  dead. 
His  Medical  Jurisprudence  and  his  Political  Economy 
have  no  merit  whatever.  His  Essay  on  the  Pentateuch 
has  long  since  had  the  flimsy  veil  of  its  false  learning 
and  inconclusive  reasoning  torn  from  it,  and  stands  ex- 
posed in  all  its  deformity.  He  was  full  of  what 
Horace  calls  sapientia  insaniens,  the  extravagances  of 
Philosophy,  which  are  contradicted  by  the  stern  con- 
victions and  the  daily  experience  of  almost  every 
man.  His  contributions  to  the  "  Southern  Review  " 
are  worthy  of  mention ;  and,  as  they  exhibit  him  to 
great  advantage,  I  give  the  articles  by  name :  Principles 
of  Agriculture,  1st  vol. ;  Gall  on  the  Functions  of  the 


170        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Brain,  1st  vol. ;  Begin's  Therapeutics,  1st  vol.;  Hig- 
gin's  Celtic  Druids,  3d  vol.;  Modern  Gastronomy,  3d  vol.' 
Higgin's  Celtic  Druids,  4th  vol. ;  Bentham  on  Judicial 
Evidence,  5th  vol. ;  Agrarian  and  Education  Systems, 
6th  vol.;  Geology  and  Pentateuch,  6th  vol.;  Social 
Life  of  England  and  France,  6th  vol. ;  Operation  of 
Poisons,  7th  vol.;  United  States  Bank,  8th  vol.; 
Distribution  of  Wealth,  8th  vol. 

It  may  be  that  I  have  placed  too  low  an  estimate 
upon  the  intellect  and  attainments  of  Dr.  Cooper. 
His  style  was  bold,  sententious,  dogmatic,  but  clear, 
simple  and  perspicuous.  Never  was  the  axiom  truer 
than  in  his  case,  that  "the  style  is  the  man." 

I  am  next  to  speak  of  him  as  Professor  and  Presi- 
dent of  the  College.  It  is  with  a  feeling  of  sadness 
that  I  approach  this  part  of  my  subject.  Who  can 
contemplate,  unmoved  and  unaffected,  the  spectacle  of 
an  old  man  subjected  to  the  bitterest  trials,  the  object 
of  the  grossest  abuse,  presented  for  trial  by  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  people,  and  at  last  ejected  from  office, 
and  driven  to  seek  some  new  employment  to  fill  out 
the  little  remnant  of  his  days.  At  the  period  of  Dr. 
Cooper's  election  to  the  Chair  of  Chemistry  in  the 
South  Carolina  College,  the  science  was  in  comparative 
infancy,  and  had  attracted  but  little  attention  in  this 
country.  It  is  probable  that  it  was  the  best  selection 
which  could  have  been  commanded.  He  brought  to 
the  Chair  a  knowledge  of  it  as  it  then  existed,  and 
soon  elevated  it  to  a  rank  and  popularity  not  surpassed 
by  any  other  department  in  the  College.  The  secret 
of  his  success  is  easily  told.  Never,  perhaps,  was  there 
a  better  lecturer,  a  finer  teacher.  He  had  the  envi- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        171 

able  gift  of  telling  well  and  impressively  all  that  he 
knew.  The  stores  of  his  mind,  as  we  have  seen,  were 
ample  and  varied,  and  he  had  the  happy  talent  of 
bringing  them  all  to  bear,  when  needed,  upon  the 
subject  under  discussion.  His  own  personal  experi- 
ence had  been  large  and  peculiar.  He  had  mingled 
intimately  with  the  most  remarkable  men  of  the  Old 
and  the  New  World,  and  had  been  an  eye-witness  of 
some  of  the  most  stirring  and  interesting  events  re- 
corded in  history.  He  knew  Fox,  and  Pitt,  and 
Sheridan,  and  Erskine  and  Burke,  and  would  tell  of  the 
impression  made  upon  him  when  he  witnessed  those 
mighty  efforts  which  have  shed  such  glory  upon  the 
authors  and  their  country.  With  Watt  he  had  gone 
to  Paris  during  the  French  Revolution,  and  had  been 
closeted  with  Eobespierre,  Petion,  and  other  members 
of  the  Jacobin  Club.  Coming  to  America  in  1792,  he 
made  the  acquaintance  of  the  great  men  of  the  Revo- 
lution, and  throwing  himself  actively  into  the  cause 
of  Jeffersonian  democracy,  was  admitted  to  terms 
of  intimacy  with  its  leaders.  He  turned  all  his 
knowledge  to  account.  With  wonderful  art  he  could 
weave  a  dinner  with  Priestley,  a  glass  of  wine  with 
Robespierre,  a  supper  with  the  Brissotians,  or  a  race 
for  the  Convention  against  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  into 
a  lecture  upon  asbestos,  soda,  or  magnesia.  His  read- 
ing and  intercourse  with  men  had  furnished  him  with 
a  fund  of  anecdote,  and  this  he  dealt  out  on  all  proper 
occasions  with  the  best  effect.  He  knew  as  a  teacher, 
that  for  success  the  attention  of  the  pupil  must  be 
secured,  and  that  owing  to  the  nature  of  the  subject, 
it  is  sometimes  necessary  to  resort  to  extraordinary 


172        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

expedients  for  this  purpose.  Here  he  showed  wonder- 
ful resources/  and  it  may  be  said,  without  much  fear 
of  contradiction,  that  the  less  attractive  the  topic,  the 
more  apt  was  the  lecturer  to  impress  himself  upon  his 
hearers.  There  were  in  his  teachings  no  parade,  no 
affectation,  but  the  great  truths  of  science  were  uttered 
with  childlike  simplicity.  His  industry  and  enthu- 
siasm were  unsurpassed,  and  he  ever  brought  to  his 
task  his  highest  powers,  and  noblest  energies.  He  had 
his  prejudices  of  education,  but  he  loved  knowledge 
for  its  own  sake,  and  engaged  honestly  in  the  pursuit. 
Such  was  Dr.  Cooper  as  a  Teacher,  and  had  he  been 
content  with  a  Professorship,  he  might  have  reposed 
in  peace  and  quiet.  In  an  evil  hour  he  accepted  the 
Presidency,  and  then  his  troubles  began.  It  is  worthy 
of  remark,  that  he  was  elected  President  by  ten  votes 
only,  nineteen  being  present.  This,  then,  was  his  first 
misfortune.  No  one  perhaps  will  say  now  that  he  was 
the  man  for  the  office;  for  the  history  of  his  adminis- 
tration, which  has  already  been  briefly  given,  proves 
otherwise.  I  attach  no  blame  to  the  Board,  for  I  know 
not  the  particular  circumstances  by  which  they  were 
surrounded;  but  the  fact  that  he  was  elected  only  by 
a  majority  of  one,  attests  that  he  had  not  a  cordial 
support,  and  that  it  was  regarded  as  a  doubtful  experi- 
ment. But  in  what  was  he  wanting?  Why  did  he 
fail?  This  is  the  inquiry  which  I  am.  now  to  make. 
It  was  not  owing  to  his  want  of  science  and  learning ; 
for  he  had  far  more  of  these  than  falls  to  the  lot  of 
educated  men  generally.  No ;  his  intellectual  qualifi- 
cations must  be  conceded  in  the  fullest  sense.  It  must 
be  looked  for  then  somewhere  else.  First,  I  observe 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        173 

tha,t  he  was  an  old  man  when  he  came  among  us; 
having  already  reached  the  ripe  age  of  sixty.  He  was 
an  entire  stranger  to  Southern  society,  and  knew 
nothing  of  the  peculiarities  of  Southern  youth.  His 
own  character  was  fully  formed,  and  his  prejudices 
and  his  opinions,  his  sympathies  and  his  antipathies, 
were  invincible.  This  was  truer  of  him  than  of  most 
men,  for  his  life  in  England,  and  at  the  North,  had 
been  active,  restless  and  turbulent.  He  had  already 
reached  conclusions  on  every  possible  question  of 
politics,  morals  and  religion.  No  man  was  more 
tenacious,  dogmatic,  or  had  a  bolder  and  more  uncom- 
promising spirit.  In  a  community  so  different  from 
those  in  which  he  had  formerly  moved,  it  is  not  to  be 
wondered  at  that  in  many  things  there  could  be  no 
sympathy,  no  intercommunion  of  feeling  and  senti- 
ment. Questions  of  education,  the  government  and 
management  of  young  men — these,  with  all  the  com- 
plex details  which  make  up  a  Collegiate  system,  were 
now  the  prominent  matters  of  attention.  It  is  very 
clear  that  what  might  do  for  England,  or  the  North, 
might  fail  here  entirely ;  and  that  a  system  to  be  practi- 
cable, must  be  accommodated  to  the  peculiar  wants, 
habits  of  thought,  and  genius  of  the  people.  This  he 
could  not  do ;  he  could  not  digest  a  scheme  adapted  to  our 
peculiarities,  for  he  had  but  one  standard  of  education. 
Education  consisted  in  an  absorbing  attention  to 
certain  things,  and  an  entire  exclusion  of  others. 
That  which  was  not  suited  to  his  taste  or  genius,  he 
conceived  had  nothing  good  in  it.  He  had  his  idio- 
syncrasies on  this  subject,  but  did  not  make  sufficient 
allowance  for  those  of  the  rest  of  mankind.  He 
11 


174         HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

flattered  himself  that  he  had  fairly  tried  the  whole 
circle  of  studies ;  that  he  had  accurately  measured  their 
relative  values,  and  separated  those  which  are  alone 
proper  objects  of  thought  and  pursuit.  And  he  had, 
too,  his  peculiar  notions  of  government,  which  were 
derived  from  his  knowledge  of  youth  elsewhere.  But 
he  had  to  govern  Southern  youth.  Whether  for  better 
or  for  worse,  they  have  their  peculiarities,  which  spring 
from  the  manners,  customs  and  institutions  of  the 
country.  In  certain  particulars  he  erred  grievously 
in  his  estimate.  There  may  be  liars  in  College,  but 
it  is  altogether  certain  that  the  youth  of  no  Southern 
College  can  be  made  to  unite  in  telling  a  lie  in  an 
investigation  before  the  Faculty,  nor  is  it  possible  that 
they  can  combine  by  fifties  to  protect  a  thief  or  a 
burglar.  I  allude  to  this  in  no  feeling  of  unkindness, 
but  to  illustrate  the  difficulties  of  his  position.  No  doubt 
he  had  seen  this  in  youth  elsewhere,  and  supposed 
that  here  they  had  the  same  character.  All  will 
agree  with  me  that  such  false  notions  would  be  neces- 
sarily fatal  in  the  South  Carolina  College.  Dr. 
Maxcy,  as  Dr.  Henry  tells  us  in  his  eulogy,  judged 
differently.  He  saw  in  Southern  youth  a  conviction 
of  independence,  and  a  disposition  to  assert  and  exer- 
cise it.  He  did  not  attempt  to  extirpate  this  elevated 
principle,  but  to  modify  it.  He  appealed  to  the 
honor  of  his  pupils,  and  with  generous  minds  the 
appeal  was  always  powerful,  and  generally  successful. 
If  there  be  any  among  us  who  object  to  this — and  I 
know  there  are — let  them  abolish  the  institution  of 
slavery;  for  that  spirit  is  born  of  it.  The  great 
philosophic  statesman,  Burke,  ascribes  the  high  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        175 

haughty  spirit  of  independence  in  the  Southern  States 
to  "the  vast  multitude  of  slaves"  among  them. 
There,  he  adds,  "liberty  looks  like  something  that  is 
more  noble  and  liberal."  "So  it  was  among  the 
ancient  commonwealths,  and  such  will  be  all  masters 
of  slaves,  who  are  not  slaves  themselves." 

Another  cause  of  failure  is  to  be  found  in  his  busy 
spirit.  I  use  the  term  in  no  offensive  sense.  Had  he 
confined  himself  purely,  to  the  matters  of  the  College, 
to  the  specific  duties  which  he  was  required  to  dis- 
charge, he  might  have  had  success.  But  this  was 
impossible.  His  life  had  been  spent  amid  storms  and 
tempests,  and  the  howling  of  the  wind  and  the 
muttering  sound  of  the  thunder  were  music  to  his  ears. 
He  could  not  sit  still;  he  must  plunge  into  its  chaos 
and  confusion.  But  to  drop  metaphor.  He  loved  excite- 
ment, and  would  participate  in  it  wherever  it  was  to  be 
found.  He  was  a  partizan  with  more  than  usual  bit- 
terness. In  the  political  controversies  of  the  day,  he 
would  act  a  part,  and  in  South  Carolina  made  himself 
odious  to  a  large  number  by  it.  Persons  would 
believe,  and  would  say,  that  he  was  brought  here  not 
to  shape  the  politics  of  the  State,  not  to  encourage 
and  foment  dissensions  among  her  public  men,  but  to 
build  up  and  establish  the  milder  reign  of  science  and 
of  letters.  But  this  was  not  all.  There  is  an  interest 
dearer  than  political  interest,  dear  as  that  is ;  and  this 
was  not  safe  from  his  intrusion.  I  mean  the  religious. 
He  had  his  own.  opinions.  He  had  drunk  deep  at  the 
fountain  of  infidelity;  he  had  sympathized  with  the 
sneering  savans  of  Paris,  and  sat  at  the  feet  of  the 
most  skeptical  philosophers  of  England.  If  there 


176        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

were  any  feeling  of  his  nature  stronger  than  all  the 
rest,  it  was  the  feeling  of  opposition  to  the  Christian 
religion.  He  believed  it  to  be  a  fraud  and  imposture; 
an  artful  contrivance  to  cheat  fools,  and  scare  little 
children  and  old  women.  He  came  among  a  people 
where  the  universal  faith  was  the  faith  of  Christianity, 
and  he  proposed  to  subvert  their  altars,  and  to  inter- 
fere with  their  worship.  I  have  already  said  that  he 
was  bold  and  restless.  On  this  delicate  question,  as 
well  as  others,  he  must  define  his  position.  He 
must  tell  the  people  who  had  honored  him  with  their 
confidence,  that  their  God  was  an  idol,  and  their 
religion  a  superstition.  In  every  way  he  strove  to 
impress  his  opinions.  He  had  no  concealment;  he 
was  known  as  the  great  adversary  of  the  Church.  On 
all  occasions  he  treated  its  pretensions  with  contempt. 
Its  great  author  was  but  an  imperfect  man,  who  was 
to  be  judged  by  the  same  rules  with  which  we  judge 
other  moral  reformers;  and  the  priesthood  had  no 
other  but  a  self-conferred  authority,  and  were  banded 
together  for  the  promotion  of  selfish  ends  and  temporal 
advantages.  All  knew  that  these  were  his  views. 
He  made  them  known  in  the  social  circle,  in  his  inter- 
course with  the  young  men,  and  in  various  publica- 
tions which  he  issued  from  time  to  time.  Under  such 
circumstances,  what  must  be  the  impressions  made  by 
his  ministrations  in  the  College  pulpit?  What  must 
the  students  think  of  the  man?  Not  only  must  such 
services  be  a  mockery,  but  all  respect  for  the  authority 
of  one,  who  would  lead  in  such  a  hypocritical  ceremony, 
must  of  necessity  pass  away.  He  read  the  Bible, 
whose  authority  he  openly  denied,  and  prayed  to  a 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        177 

God  in  whom  he  did  not  believe,  with  less  of  reverence 
than  he  would  discuss  the  theory  of  phlogiston,  or  the 
hypothesis  of  the  igneous  formation  of  the  earth.  He 
was  now  President  of  the  College,  and  clothed  with  a 
most  important  and  responsible  trust.  The  youth  of 
the  State  were  before  him,  and  he  was  to  mould  their 
opinions,  and  fashion  their  character.  It  was  not  only 
the  right,  but  the  duty  of  the  people,  whose  children 
they  were,  to  look  to  the  matter.  It  was  their  part  to 
protect  them  against  the  influence  of  a  false  and  soul- 
destroying  philosophy;  a  species  of  Pyrrhonism,  a 
refined  and  subtle  dialectics,  which  removed  all  the 
foundations  of  belief,  and  spread  over  the  mind  the 
dark  and  chilling  cloud  of  doubt  and  uncertainty. 
The  House  of  Representatives  very  properly  then 
demanded  an  investigation.  The  history  of  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  Board  has  been  given  with  sufficient 
fullness,  and  I  will  not  repeat  it.  It  is  only  proper 
that  I  make  some  comments  upon  it.  With  all 
deference  then,  I  remark,  that  the  charges  and  specifi- 
cations which  were  reported  by  the  Committee,  were 
amply  sustained.  All  that  I  have  said  of  Dr.  Cooper 
was  proved  by  reference  to  his  known  publications, 
and  by  the  testimony  of  living  witnesses.  It  is  honor- 
able, however,  to  the  Board,  that  it  was  reluctant  to 
make  the  sacrifice.  In  the  brief  history  of  his  trial,  I 
have  recorded  certain  facts,  with  no  other  view  than 
to  exhibit  the  spirit  of  respect  and  kindness  which 
pervaded  the  whole  investigation.  And  at  this  period, 
now  that  the  immediate  actors  are  dead,  who  would 
have  it  otherwise?  There  was  nothing  rash,  nothing 
precipitate.  No  fanatical  zeal,  no  blind  enthusiasm, 


178        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

urged  them  forward.  All  was  calm  and  deliberate. 
He  was  allowed  every  opportunity  for  defence,  and 
his  long  and  elaborate  replies  are  placed  on  record. 
The  reader  is  aware  from  the  history,  that  the  charges 
were  dismissed ;  this  was  the  crowning  act  of  kindness 
and  of  charity.  But  the  public  were  not  satisfied,  and 
he  was  finally  disconnected. 

I  have  thus  endeavored  to  account  for  the  failure  of 
Dr.  Cooper's  administration.  At  other  times,  and  in 
other  communities,  he  might  have  succeeded ;  but  it 
was  impossible  here.  He  loved  the  College,  and  was 
nattered  by  his  position.  He  labored  honestly  and 
industriously  for  what  he  conceived  to  be  its  best 
interests.  Nor  did  he  labor  in  vain.  He  gave  the  first 
great  impulse  to  the  cause  of  Physical  Science  in  our 
State,  and  it  was  he  who  first  made  known  to  our 
people  the  names  of  Watt,  of  Cavendish,  of  Black,  of 
Scheele,  of  Davy,  of  Lavoisier  and  of  Priestley.  Owing 
to  his  peculiar  views,  his  suggestions  on  the  subject  of 
educational  reform  have  110  very  great  value.  But  his 
soul  was  in  the  subject,  and  his  reports  to  the  Board 
abound  in  them.  It  was  a  cherished  notion  with  hinT] 
to  make  education  the  cheapest  of  all  commodities ;  to 
scatter  the  rich  treasure  amid  all  the  ranks  and  classes 
of  society.  The  State  had  a  College,  and  he  thought 
it  beneath  its  dignity  to  charge  for  admission  to  its 
privileges.  He  remarks  in  one  of  his  reports,  that  he 
desires  to  place  it  on  record  among  their  documents, 
that  his  full  and  deliberate  persuasion  is,  that  a  Free  V 
College  is  as  necessary  as  a  Free  School,  and  that  the 
exaction  of  tuition  money  for  education  cannot  be 
defended  either  on  the  grounds  of  justice  or  expe- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        179 

diency.  In  this  he  exhibits  a  liberal  and  catholic 
spirit,  and  signalizes  his  sincere  devotion  to  the  sacred 
cause  of  letters. 

I  have  in  the  last  place  to  speak  of  Dr.  Cooper  as  a 
man;  of  his  private  and  social  relations.  He  was 
remarkable  for  his  personal  virtue.  His  integrity  was 
never  called  in  question.  He  was  open,  frank,  and  free 
from  all  dissimulation.  He  made  no  mere  professions. 
Whether  of  inen  or  measures,  he  said  what  he  thought, 
and  was  never  chargeable  with  insincerity.  As  may  be 
inferred  from  what  has  already  been  recorded  of  him, 
the  tone  of  his  nature  was  strong  and  decided.  I  am 
guilty  of  no  inconsistency  when  I  say,  that  he  loved 
the  truth ;  he  never  embraced  error  as  error,  false- 
hood for  the  sake  of  falsehood,  though  he  suffered 
frequent  imposition.  In  his  social  relations  he  was 
most  agreeable.  He  would  throw  off  the  dogmatism 
of  the  teacher,  and  be  like  other  men.  He  was  a  fine 
table  companion,  and  few  acted  their  parts  on  such 
occasions  with  like  effect.  In  addition  to  his  literary 
stores,  his  fund  of  incident,  anecdote  and  story,  con- 
stituted a  vast  treasure-house,  from  which  he  would 
draw  to  illustrate  every  possible  topic  of  conversation. 
A  Boswell  could  have  found  in  his  table-talk  much 
that  was  entertaining  and  instructive,  and  worthy  of 
preservation.  He  was  punctilious  in  the  discharge 
of  the  duties  of  the  citizen,  and  set  a  high  value  upon 
such  privileges.  He  was  kind  as  a  neighbor,  and  in 
his  intercourse  with  men,  was  free  from  selfishness. 
As  a  husband,  a  father,  a  master,  he  was  without  fault. 
What  more  shall  I  add !  Death  has  set  its  seal  upon 
him,  and  while  his  virtues  should  be  remembered,  let 


180        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

his  faults  be  forgiven.  Bad  is  the  heart  which  could 
now  indulge  a  feeling  of  malignity  ;  rather  let  us  find 
excuses  arid  palliations  for  his  opinions  and  his  con- 
duct, and  examine  ourselves  to  see  whether  we  did 
not  judge  him,  while  living,  with  too  great  severity. 
How  honorable  to  the  memory  of  the  elder  Scaliger, 
who  was  the  bitter  antagonist  of  Erasmus,  that  he 
mourned  with  tears  because  the  latter  was  snatched 
away  from  him  before  a  reconciliation  was  effected ! 
I  have  exhausted  my  art ;  my  pencil  has  touched  the 
canvass  for  the  last  time ;  the  portrait  is  as  complete 
as  I  can  make  it,  and  I  now  hang  it  upon  the  wall  for 
the  spectator  to  pass  judgment  upon  it. 

I  propose  now  to  give  a  brief  account  of  Thomas 
Park,  LL.  D.  He  was  born  in  Uxbridge,  Massachu- 
setts, in  1767.  He  graduated  at  Brown  University  in 
1791.  His  brother,  the  Eev.  Calvin  Park,  was  for 
many  years  a  Professor  in  that  Institution.  Shortly 
after  his  graduation,  he  left  his  native  State  and  settled 
in  Darlington  District,  South  Carolina.  He  began 
his  course  as  a  teacher  at  St.  David's  Academy  in  that 
District,  about  the  year  1792  or  1793.  November  27, 
1806,  he  was  elected  Professor  of  Languages  in  the 
South  Carolina  College.  He  continued  to  discharge 
the  duties  of  this  office  until  December  9,  1834.  To 
be  more  specific,  it  is  proper  to  add,  that  this  was  the 
date  of  his  resignation,  but  by  agreement  with  the 
committee  appointed  to  arrange  for  carrying  on  the 
exercises  of  the  College,  he  continued  to  discharge 
the  duties  of  the  Chair  for  most  of  the  succeeding 
year.  Upon  his  disconnection  he  was  elected  Treasurer 
and  Librarian,  and  held  the  office  until  his  death.  I 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        181 

knew  Dr.  Park  well,  and  think  I  am  prepared  to  place 
a  proper  estimate  upon  him.  There  was  nothing 
shining,  nothing  brilliant,  nothing  very  remarkable 
in  the  character  of  his  intellect.  I  will  be  under- 
stood when  I  say  that  he  had  capital  sense.  His 
reading  was  not  extensive,  and  his  knowledge  there- 
fore not  various.  To  general  learning  he  made  no 
pretension.  From  his  habitual  modesty  and  diffi- 
dence, he  got  credit  for  less  acquisition  than  he  really 
made.  His  attainments  were,  in  the  main,  restricted 
to  the  department  of  which  he  had  charge  ;  and  even 
here  he  was  thought  by  many  to  know  less  than  he 
did.  Upon  the  whole,  he  did  not  pass  in  amount  of 
knowledge  for  what  he  was  worth.  A  little  more 
boldness,  a  little  more  presumption,  would  have  served 
a  good  purpose  here,  as  they  frequently  do  in  other 
things.  Many,  with  not  half  his  learning,  are  judged 
superior.  I  will  not  assert  that  hi&  reading  in  Latin 
and  Greek  was  very  extensive,  for  I  have  been  led  to 
believe  that,  in  this  particular,  not  a  few  surpassed 
him.  But  he  had  read  carefully  all  that  is  embraced 
in  our  highest  Collegiate  courses.  Dr.  Henry  has 
often  told  me  that  his  knowledge  was  critical  and  exact. 
His  scholarship,  then,  was  entitled  to  respect,  and 
it  is  great  injustice  to  think  otherwise.  I  think  that 
he  was  not  capable  of  inspiring  much  enthusiasm ;  but 
he  was  laborious,  pains-taking  and  conscientious,  and 
could  make  scholars  of  those  who  were  rightly  disposed. 
For  the  careless  and  idle,  he  could  do  but  little.  I 
wish  not  to  indulge  in  terms  of  extravagant  praise, 
and  I  will  not  claim  for  him,  therefore,  very  high 
powers  as  a  disciplinarian.  But,  in  this  respect,  too,  he 


182        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

was  underrated.  I  am  sure  that  he  was  was  not 
grossly  deficient.  The  records  of  the  Faculty  prove 
otherwise.  During  the  Presidency  of  Dr.  Maxcy,  he 
frequently  acted  as  Chairman  of  the  Faculty,  and  had 
the  executive  duties  devolved  upon  him.  He  acquitted 
himself  well.  I  would  not,  however,  say  that  he  had 
that  sort  of  character  which  would  fit  him  for  that 
responsible  position.  In  the  subordinate  sphere  of  a 
Professor,  he  was  the  equal  of  men  generally.  There 
are  times  when  he  who  is  at  the  helm  of  government 
must  almost  forget  that  he  is  a  man  ;  when  he  must 
bury  the  sympathies  of  his  nature,  and  enter  upon  a 
work  of  blood.  This  he  could  not  do.  His  spirit 
was  gentle,  and  he  loved  not  the  strife  of  battle, 
the  roar  of  arms.  'On  such  occasions  he  could  not 
lead ;  but  he  would  follow  wherever  duty  called  him. 
He  filled  a  Professor's  Chair  for  twenty-nine  years, 
and  who  for  so  long  a  period  will  lay  claim  to  greater 
fidelity  ?  Mere  genius  and  learning,  desirable  as  they 
are,  do  not  alone  make  the  instructor.  There  are 
qualifications  of  a  higher  nature,  and  these  he  pos- 
sessed in  full  measure.  His  heavenly  temper,  his 
patient  endurance,  his  punctuality,  his  sense  of  justice, 
his  unselfish  devotion — these  surely  will  atone  for  any 
supposed  deficiency  in  knowledge.  They  are  not  light 
possessions,  and  no  one  can  set  limits  to  their  influ- 
ence in  the  progress  of  education.  His  pupils  indulged 
towards  him  a  love  scarcely  less  than  filial,  and  an 
appeal  to  his  kind  and  noble  heart  was  never  made  in 
vain.  Could  such  a  person  be  so  long  connected  with 
the  College  without  doing  vast  good !  Surely  none 
can  doubt  in  the  matter.  Let  all  the  deductions  be 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        183 

made  which  the  most  skeptical  may  urge,  and  I 
hesitate  not  to  assert  that  of  the  long  list  which  has 
graced  the  corps  of  the  Faculty,  few,  indeed,  upon 
the  whole,  have  rendered  as  valuable  services  to 
the  youth  of  the  State  as  Dr.  Park.  1  have  said 
that,  upon  his  retirement  from  the  Professorship, 
he  was  elected  Treasurer  and  Librarian.  It  is  proper 
to  add  that  these  offices  were  subsequently  divided, 
and  that  he  was  continued  in  the  former.  When,  in 
1835,  he  withdrew  entirely  from  all  connection  with 
the  instruction  of  the  College,  the  Board  of  Trustees 
passed  the  following  resolution  : 

Resolved,  That  this  Board  entertain  the  highest 
respect  for  the  amiable  character  and  virtuous  conduct 
of  Dr.  Thomas  Park,  late  Professor  of  Languages  in 
the  College,  and  that  he  is  entitled  to  our  thanks  for  his 
long,  faithful  and  useful  services  in  his  Professorship, 
as  well  as  for  the  cheerfulness  with  which  he  afforded 
his  valuable  services  in  instructing  the  classes  of  the 
College  during  the  last  session. 

To  the  last  he  enjoyed  the  undiminished  confidence 
of  the  Board.  While  he  was  Treasurer,  he  was 
robbed  of  upwards  of  $2,000  of  the  College  fund.  In  a 
letter  to  the  Board,  he  offered  to  surrender  every 
thing  he  had  to  make  good  the  loss.  The  Board 
refused  to  take  anything,  and  adopted  resolutions 
acquitting  him  of  censure,  expressive  of  their  unabated 
confidence,  and  continuing  him  in  office.  Dr.  Park 
had  not  only  a  strong  sense  of  justice,  but  a  peculiarly 
refined  sensibility.  Without  any  pretension  what- 


184        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

ever,  he  had  a  true  dignity,  a  noble  elevation  of 
character.  He  would  not  continue  in  office  against 
the  wishes  of  those  who  placed  him  in  it,  or  when  he 
suspected,  in  any  degree,  his  own  competency.  Deep  in 
the  recesses  of  that  gentle  and  feminine  nature, 
reposed  a  spirit  of  sternest  manliness,  and  most  inflex- 
ible independence.  Perhaps  some  who  will  read  this 
sketch,  and  think  they  know  Dr.  Park,  will  differ  with 
me.  But  I  am  right ;  his  virtues  were  positive*  his 
character  real  and  well  defined.  He  was  not  a  mere 
passive  being;  he  could  act  with  the  decision  and 
energy  of  other  men.  I  have  before  me  a  communi- 
cation addressed  by  him  to  the  Board  of  Trustees 
upwards  of  forty  years  ago,  and  I  ask  to  call  attention 
to  it  for  a  moment,  as  it  illustrates  the  point  in  ques- 
tion. The  tone  of  the  paper  is  really  beautiful.  The 
whole  man  may  be  seen  in  it.  If  there  were  nothing 
else,  there  is  material  sufficient  to  enable  the  skilful 
artist  to  give  his  portrait.  Here  we  have  good 
sense,  uttered  in  plain,  unadorned  and  strong  lan- 
guage ;  meekness,  humility,  complete  forgetfulness  of 
selfish  interest,  delicacy  of  feeling,  sense  of  justice, 
extreme  conscientiousness,  and  an  absence  of  all 
temper.  But  the  act  itself  testifies  to  promptitude, 
energy,  and  decision  of  character.  He  complains  of  a 
wrong  inflicted  upon  him,  but  he  indulges  in  no  de- 
nunciation of  persons,  no  crimination  of  others.  He 
is  grieved,  he  mourns  at  the  violation  of  his  feelings. 
He  would  have  it  otherwise,  but  he  has  no  right  to 
dictate  the  manner  of  proceeding  against  him.  He 
finds  consolation  in  the  purity  of  his  heart,  and  in  the 
fact  that  he  never  sought  the  office.  A  feeling  of 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        185 

ness  comes  over  me  as  I  read  it,  and  who  can 
withhold  his  sympathies  from  the  meek,  the  humble, 
and  heavenly-minded  author.  I  give  the  follow- 
ing extract :  "  I  beg  leave  to  communicate  to  you  my 
intention  of  resigning  my  office  as  Professor  in  Decem- 
ber next.  If  I  should  think  it  necessary  to  leave  the 
College  at  an  earlier  period,  I  hope  your  honorable 
Board  will  have  the  goodness  to  grant  me  the  indul- 
gence. I  have  frequently  said  that  whenever  any 
respectable  number  of  the  Board  should  express  a  wish 
for  niy  resignation,  that  wish  should  be  immediately 
gratified.  It  would  have  been  more  agreeable  to  my 
feelings  had  that  wish  been  communicated  to  me 
privately,  instead  of  being  proclaimed  in  the  State 
House  ;  but  I  had  no  right  to  prescribe  the  mode.  Of 
what  importance  are  the  feelings  and  reputation  of  a 
poor,  obscure  individual!  I  have  had  the  honor  of 
holding  the  office  eleven  years.  Of  the  fidelity  and 
ability  with  which  I  have  discharged  my  duties,  I  am 
not  the  proper  judge ;  the  decision  I  leave  to  those 
who  are  most  competent  to  make  it.  But  a  few  years 
since,  my  colleagues  and  myself  were  honored  with  a 
resolution  of  your  Board,  expressing  its  entire  appro- 
bation of  our  conduct.  It  is  some  consolation  to  me 
that  I  never  sought  the  office.  It  was  not  until  after  the 
repeated  solicitations  of  my  late  friend,  Judge  Wilde, 
who  knew  me  better,  perhaps,  than  any  other  man 
that  ever  lived,  that  I  consented  to  accept  the  office. 
This 'acceptance  I  have  often  since  regretted." 

I  give  the  action  of  the  Board : 

Resolved,  That  this  Board  entertains  the   highest 


186        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

sense  of  the  services  of  Professor  Park ;  that  if  any 
censure  has  been  expressed  with  regard  to  his  conduct, 
it  has  been  entirely  unauthorized  by  the  Board;  and 
that  the  President  be  requested  to  communicate  to 
Professor  Park  the  unanimous  wish  of  the  Trustees 
on  this  subject,  and  to  assure  him  that  if  it  be  com- 
patible with  his  convenience  to  continue  in  his  present 
situation,  his  doing  so  will  give  pleasure  to  the  Board. 

It  may  not  be  unnecessary  for  me  to  add  that  there 
was  nothing  morose,  nothing  ascetic  in  his  nature. 
He  was  social  and  communicative.  He  looked  upon 
life  in  all  its  relations  as  a  blessing,  and  with  grateful 
heart  partook  of  all  its  rational  enjoyments.  He 
loved  a  joke,  or  a  good  story,  and  would  not  unfre- 
quently  contribute  one  himself.  He  had  his  full  share 
of  trouble  and  trial,  but  under  all  circumstances  dis- 
played meekness  and  resignation.  No  cares  however 
distracting,  no  fortunes  however  adverse,  could  so 
disturb  his  equanimity  as  to  make  him  miserable. 
He  had  learned  his  lesson  better  than  this,  and  felt 
that  the  hand  of  God  was  upon  him.  He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Baptist  Church,  and  on  his  noble  heart  had 
been  shed  all  the  sanctifying  influences  of  the  Christian 
religion.  He  died  at  Winnsborough,  July  16th,  1844, 
in  the  79th  year  of  his  age.  His  body  was  brought 
to  this  place,  and  buried  in  the  Baptist  Church-yard. 
I  had  the  happiness  to  hear  the  funeral  discourse 
pronounced  on  the  occasion  by  his  pupil  and  friend 
the  Eeverend  Dr.  Thornwell.  It  was  a  noble  tribute 
to  one  of  the  best  of  men.  And  it  was  my  privilege, 
too,  to  stand  by  the  yawning  grave,  and  see  his  mortal 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        187 

remains  committed  to  the  last,  sad  resting-place.  In 
him  was  realized  the  age  sketched  by  Johnson,  in 
"The  Vanity  of  Human  Wishes:" 

"An  age  that  melts  with  unperceived  decay, 
And  glides  in  modest  innocence  away ; 
Whose  peaceful  day  benevolence  endears, 
Whose  night  congratulating  conscience  cheers ; 
The  general  favorite,  as  the  general  friend ; 
Such  age  there  is,  and  who  shall  wish  its  end!" 

I  have  made  diligent  inquiry,  but  have  failed  in 
procuring  any  thing  more  than  the  scantiest  materials 
for  a  biographical  sketch  of  Professor  Wallace.  I 
knew  him  personally,  and  this  will  aid  me  in  forming 
an  estimate  of  him. 

James  Wallace  was  born  in  Kilkenny,  Ireland,  and 
upon  his  removal  to  the  United  States  first  resided  in 
some  of  the  Northern  States.  I  think  I  have  under- 
stood that  at  one  period  of  his  life  he  was  connected 
as  Instructor  with  the  Roman  Catholic  College  at 
Georgetown.  On  the  2d  of  December,  1820,  he  was 
elected  Professor  of  Mathematics  in  the  South  Carolina 
College,  in  place  of  the  Reverend  Dr.  Hanckel,  re- 
signed, to  serve  for  one  year,  and  December  1,  1821, 
he  was  permanently  elected.  December  9,  1834, 
he  was  reformed  out  of  office  along  with  Dr.  Cooper, 
and  most  of  his  colleagues.  There  can  be  no  doubt 
that.  Dr.  Wallace  had  mathematical  genius,  and  fine 
attainments  in  his  department.  According  to  compe- 
tent judges,  his  work  "On  the  Globes"  is  sufficient 
proof  of  the  fact.  But  I  happen  to  know  that  he  did 
not  place  a  very  high  value  upon  it.  I  have  heard 
him  say,  that  the  manuscript  of  a  work  to  which  he 
had  devoted  twenty  years  of  his  life  was  destroyed  by 


188        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

fire;  and  he  thought  that  but  for  that  accident  he 
would  have  left  something  worthy  of  remembrance. 
He  was  one  of  the  contributors  to  "The  Southern 
Review,"  and  acted  well  his  part  in  glorious  rivalry 
with  Legare,  Elliott,  Cooper,  Henry,  Nott  and  others. 
He  was  a  clear  thinker,  and  a  good  writer.  The 
following  articles  were  written  by  him: — Geometry 
and  Calculus,  1st  vol. ;  Steam  Engine  and  Railroad,  7th 
vol. ;  Canal  Navigation,  &c.,  8th  vol.  As  a  Teacher  he 
is  to  be  commended.  He  was  patient  and  laborious, 
and  seemed  to  take  a  real  pleasure  in  the  business  of 
instruction.  He  was  a  kind-hearted  man,  and  exceed- 
ingly gentle  in  his  whole  bearing  in  the  class  room. 
Towards  "the  weaker  brethren,"  his  heart  melted 
with  compassion.  No  obtuseness  of  perception,  no 
degree  of  stolidity  could  provoke  him  to  ill  temper. 
Let  others  settle  the  question  whether  every  man  can 
be  a  mathematician  if  he  chooses ;  and  whether  the 
difference  in  respect  to  mathematical  knowledge 
between  young  men  at  College  is  due  to  study  and 
application.  I  know  not  that  Dr.  Wallace  came  to 
any  conclusions  in  the  matter,  but  I  suspect  that  he 
thought  some  were  so  constituted  that  they  could 
digest  but  little ;  and  in  such  cases  he  labored  with 
increased  zeal,  that  the  little  might  be  supplied  to 
them.  Upon  leaving  the  College  he  retired  to  a  small 
farm  in  Lexington  District,  near  Columbia,  where  he 
died  February  18,  1851.  His  body  is  buried  in  the 
Roman  Catholic  Cemetery  of  this  Town,  and  the 
spot  is  marked  by  a  neat  marble  monument,  with  a 
Latin  inscription. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

I  resume  the  thread  of  my  narrative.  It  is  not  to 
be  disguised,  that  the  close  of  the  year  1834  found 
the  College  in  a  deplorable  condition.  It  was  almost 
deserted.  Parents  for  the  last  several  years  had 
either  kept  their  sons  at  home,  or  sought  an  education 
for  them  in  other  and  distant  Colleges.  I  have  before 
me  the  original  letter  of  Dr.  Henry,  the  acting  Presi- 
dent, to  the  Board,  communicating  the  state  of  the 
College.  This  letter  is  not  recorded  among  the 
minutes,  and  I  have  found  it  amid  the  mass  of  papers 
which  had  been  referred  to  the  Committee  on  the 
College.  It  is  important,  as  it  sheds  a  light  which 
probably  cannot  be  derived  from  any  other  source.  I 
see  from  it  that  at  no  period  during  the  year  did  the 
number  exceed  fifty-two.  Of  these  one  was  sus- 
pended and  reported  for  expulsion,  and  nine  tocik 
dismissions.  Twenty-two  had  passed  their  final  ex- 
amination at  the  date  of  the  report,  (November  26,)  and 
the  whole  number  left  in  the  College  was  twenty  only. 
The  condition  of  things  was  truly  bad,  and  the  pros- 
pect not  at  all  encouraging.  Dr.  Henry  reports  four 
as  having  been  received  for  the  class  of  1835,  and  his 
conjectural  estimates  only  deepen  the  shade  which 
rests  upon  the  College.  Under  these  circumstances 
the  exercises  were  opened  in  1835.  The  entire  corps 
of  instructors  consisted  of  Professor  Nott,  E.  W. 
12 


190        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Gibbes,  Lewis  R.  Gibbes  and  Dr.  Park,  whose  services 
as  an  assistant  had  been  secured  by  the  Committee 
appointed  to  carry  on  the  College.  The  Rev.  Dr. 
Capers  had  been  elected  to  a  Professorship,  but  declined 
acceptance.  The  Committee  succeeded,  however,  in 
engaging  him  to  instruct  in  Moral  and  Intellectual 
Philosophy,  and  the  Evidences  of  Christianity,  at  the 
salary  of  a  Professor.  He  entered  upon  his  duties 
early  in  March,  with  the  condition  that  he  would 
remain  until  the  meeting  of  the  Board  in  November. 
Professor  Nott  was  appointed  Chairman  of  the  Faculty. 
The  Board  had  its  first  meeting  for  the  year,  June  4. 
The  corps  of  Instructors,  as  has  been  seen,  was 
incomplete.  The  persons  elected  at  a  previous  meet- 
ing had  all  declined,  with  the  exception  of  Professor 
Nott.  But  one  Chair  was  filled  permanently,  and 
some  of  the  most  important  were  entirely  vacant. 
The  Board,  in  view  of  the  state  of  things,  adopted  at 
once  the  following  resolution  : 

Resolved,  That  in  consideration  of  the  absolute 
necessity  of  providing  Professors  to  enter  upon  their 
duties  in  October  next,  the  members  of  the  Board  now 
present  will  forthwith  proceed  to  select  suitable 
persons  to  fill  the  Professorships,  for  which  competent 
candidates  may  be  offered.  And  this  Board  does 
hereby  pledge  itself  to  confirm,  at  its  Annual  Meeting 
in  December,  the  election  now  made. 

At  this  meeting  a  balloting  was  had  for  a  Professor 
of  Chemistry,  and  Dr.  William  H.  Ellet,  of  New  York, 
was  elected.  June  5  the  board  again  assembled.  It 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        191 

was  resolved  that  it  was  not  expedient  to  select  a 
President  of  the  College  at  the  present  session  of  the 
Board.  As  there  was  no  doubt  that  the  recent  oppo- 
sition to  the  College  was  on  religious  grounds,  and  as 
it  was  very  clear  now  that  it  could  not  be  restored  to 
public  confidence  unless  it  was  brought  unmistakably 
under  Christian  influence,  it  was  determined  to  estab- 
lish a  Professorship  for  this  purpose,  and  the  following 
resolution  was  therefore  adopted : 

Resolved,  That  there  be  established  a  Professorship 
of  the  Evidences  of  Christianity  and  Sacred  Litera- 
ture, and  that  the  Professor  perform  service  in  the 
College  Chapel;  and  that  he  and  the  other  Professors 
be  requested  to  make  arrangements  for  instructing  and 
lecturing  in  Moral  and  Intellectual  Philosophy  until 
a  President  shall  be  elected. 

At  this  meeting  Dr.  Francis  Lieber  was  elected 
Professor  of  History;  Isaac  W.  Stuart  elected  Profes- 
sor of  Greek  and  Roman  Literature ;  Thomas  S.  Twiss 
elected  Professor  of  Mathematics,  and  Dr.  William 
Capers  elected  Professor  of  Sacred  Literature.  The 
Professorships  were  now  filled.  The  last  act  of  the 
Board  was  the  appointment  of  a  Committee  to  receive 
the  newly  elected  Professors,  and  indicate  to  them  the 
course  of  instruction  each  is  expected  to  pursue,  and 
the  Text-Books  from  which  each  is  required  to  lecture. 

Robert  W.  Gibbes  was  born  in  the  City  of  Charles- 
ton, July  8th,  1809.  He  is  the  son  of  William  Hasell 
Gibbes,  a  patriot  of  the  Revolution,  who  was  for  a  long 
period  Master  in  Equity  for  Charleston  District.  Dr. 


192        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Gibbes  graduated  in  the  South  Carolina  College  in  1827. 
Immediately  upon  his  graduation,  December  15th,  he 
received  the  high  compliment  of  being  elected  assist- 
ant to  Dr.  Cooper  in  the  Professorship  of  Chemistry, 
Geology  and  Mineralogy.  He  entered  upon  his  duties 
with  a  small  salary.  In  1829  the  Trustees  requested 
the  Governor  to  apply  to  the  Legislature  for  an 
increase  of  the  salary  of  the  adjunct  Professor. 
He  was  an  officer  in  the  College  during  the  troubles 
of  the  Cooper  administration.  At  the  November 
meeting  of  the  Trustees,  in  1833,  Dr.  Cooper  asked - 
to  resign  the  Presidency,  on  the  condition  that  he 
continue  as  a  Lecturer  in  his  department,  and  that 
Dr.  Gibbes  be  retained  as  his  assistant.  December 
9th,  1834,  the  President  and  Professors,  at  the  request 
of  the  Board,  tendered  their  resignations.  Dr.  Gibbes 
was  now  appointed  to  the  department  of  Chemistry 
and  Mineralogy  until  July,  and  by  special  resolution 
was  constituted  a  part  of  the  Faculty.  He  was  thus 
made  Professor  pro  tempore  of  the  department.  He 
discharged  the  duties  of  the  Chair  with  entire  satisfac- 
tion, and  declined  the  solicitations  of  some  of  the 
members  of  the  Board,  to  have  his  name  put  in 
nomination  at  the  May  meeting,  when  a  permanent 
Professor  was  to  be  elected.  Having  selected  the 
medical  profession,  he  had  attended  a  course  of  lectures 
in  Philadelphia,  during  the  summer  of  1827,  and  again 
in  the  Summer  vacation  of  1828,  but  graduated  in  the 
College  of  his  State  at  Charleston  in  1830.  In  his 
particular  professsion  he  has  attained  an  enviable  repu- 
tation. He  selected  Columbia  as  his  home,  and  for 
many  years  has  taken  rank  among  its  most  distin- 


HISTOKY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        193 

guished  physicians.  It  was  not  until  1833  that  he 
entered  actively  upon  the  duties  of  the  medical 
profession.  He  was  then  an  instructor  in  the  College, 
but  by  special  arrangement  with  the  Board  was  per- 
mitted to  engage  in  practice.  In  the  course  of  that 
year,  he  and  Dr.  Josiah  C.  Nott  established  the  first 
Preparatory  School  of  Medicine,  by  lectures,  in  Colum- 
bia ;  Dr.  Nott  lecturing  on  Anatomy  and  Surgery,  and 
Dr.  Gibbes  on  Chemistry  and  Materia  Medica.  In 
1842  he  rendered  an  important  service  to  the  profes- 
sion by  a  paper  on  Typhoid  Pneumonia,  which  was 
published  in  the  American  Journal  of  Medical 
Sciences.  He  has  frequently  attended  the  meetings 
of  the  American  Medical  Association  as  a  delegate 
from  the  State,  and  has  always  been  assigned  a  con- 
spicuous position  on  its  committees.  Very  recently 
he  filled  the  position  for  two  years  of  President  of  the 
Medical  Association  of  South  Carolina.  Unforeseen 
circumstances  connected  him  for  many  years  with  the 
newspaper  press,  and  as  editor  and  proprietor  of  the 
"South  Carolinian,"  few  among  us  for  the  period 
rendered  a  more  laborious  and  useful  service. 

He  has  always  taken  great  interest  in  scientific 
pursuits,  and  has  published  valuable  papers  in  the 
Journal  of  the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences,  Phila- 
delphia, (which  he  contributed  much  to  revive,)  in  the 
second  volume  of  the  Smithsonian  Contributions,  in 
the  Proceedings  of  the  American  Association  for  the 
advancement  of  Science,  and  in  other  Journals  and 
Periodicals.  He  has  a  large  and  valuable  collection, 
amounting  to  several  thousand  specimens,  in  Palaeon- 
tology, Geology,  Mineralogy  and  Conchology.  His 


194        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

collection  of  the  Fossils  of  South  Carolina  is  particu- 
larly rich  in  the  Echinoderms  and  Shells,  illustrative 
of  the  tertiary  formation. 

Though,  according  to  Agassiz,  there  is  the  strictest 
agreement  between  all  Radiata  in  the  general  plan  of 
their  structure,  still  it  may  be  regarded  in  the  light  of  a 
heterogeneous  group,  requiring  further  subdivision, 
and,  in  consequence,  does  not  admit  of  being  treated  in 
an  entirely  satisfactory  manner.  The  Echinoderms, 
or  star-fishes  and  sea-urchins,  constitute  the  highest 
of  the  three  classes,  are  most  distinctly  marked, 
regarded  as  most  interesting,  and  have  been  the  object 
of  monographic  investigations.  They  are  to  be  found 
in  a  fossil  state,  and  thus  have  a  place  in  that  interest- 
ing field  of  inquiry,  where  the  representatives  of  the 
same  class  at  an  earlier  geological  period  can  be  com- 
pared with  those  which  exist  at  the  present  time. 
There  are  difficulties  in  respect  to  the  other  two 
classes,  the  Polypi  and  Medusae,  which  I  will  not 
mention  particularly.  I  think  it  only  necessary  to 
add,  that  they  are  of  such  nature  as  to  make  direct 
investigations  in  reference  to  them  less  inviting,  as 
they  give  less  chance  of  success.  Though,  as  I  have 
said,  there  is  a  fundamental  plan  for  the  whole  class 
of  Echinoderms,  yet  there  is  a  gradation  of  types, 
a  great  variety  of  external  forms,  and  it  becomes  a 
matter  of  scientific  importance  to  give  it  its  proper 
independence,  instead  of  confounding  it  with  a  series  of 
animal  forms  with  which  it  has  no  real  relationship. 
Dr.  Gibbes  has  published  a  monograph  of  the  fossil 
Squalidae,  which  was  characterized  by  Dr.  Morton  as 
"a  perfect  monograph,"  and  Professor  Agassiz  pro- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        195 

nounces  his  collection  in  that  department  the  finest 
he  has  seen  in  Europe  or  America. 

At  one  period  of  his  life,  in  1829,  he  made  an  effort 
to  establish  a  Public  Museum  of  Natural  History  at 
Columbia,  and  labored  at  it  for  some  time,  with  his 
usual  enthusiasm.  I  remember  meeting  him  about 
thirty  years  ago  in  the  mountains  of  North  Carolina, 
where  he  had  gone  with  the  hope  of  making  some 
valuable  additions  to  his  cabinet.  His  collection  of 
birds  particularly,  was  quite  extensive  and  interesting. 
They  were  all  prepared  and  mounted  by  himself.  Some 
of  them  may  still  be  seen  in  the  South  Carolina  College, 
in  a  state  of  good  preservation.  He  was  forced  to  aban- 
don the  enterprise,  as  it  became  apparent  that  it  could 
only  have  success  in  a  large  city.  He  has  a  fine  and 
valuable  collection  of  choice  paintings,  among  which 
are  two  early  works  of  Washington  Allston,  several 
by  Sully  and  Inman,  and  others  by  eminent  artists. 
He  has  an  original  portrait  of  Garrick  by  PINE,  and 
„  one  of  the  Seven  Ages  by  Smirke,  and  is  the  fortunate 
possessor  of  the  valuable  collection  of  old  engravings  ac- 
cumulated during  the  artist  life  of  the  venerable  Charles 
Fraser,  which  was  a  present  from  that  esteemed  friend. 

He  has  published  three  volumes  of  the  Documentary 
History  of  South  Carolina,  and  they  have  been  pro- 
nounced valuable  contributions  by  Bancroft,  Sparks, 
and  others.  I  think  his  best  production  is  his  Memoir 
of  Deveaux.  It  is  truly  a  fine  specimen  of  biography. 
Deveaux  was  a  native  of  Charleston,  an  artist  of  great 
promise,  and  died  at  Kome.  Dr.  Gibbes  was  among 
the  first  to  perceive  his  genius,  and  to  aid  him  in  his 
struggles.  The  work  is  the  tribute  of  a  friend,  and 


196        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

written  in  all  the  fervor  of  a  pure  affection.  One  of  the 
most  striking  features  in  the  character  of  Dr.  Gibbes  is 
his  untiring  industry  and  indomitable  energy.  Re- 
markable for  order  and  system,  few  can  equal  him  in 
the  amount  of  his  labors.  These  labors  have  been 
multifarious,  but  he  always  acquits  himself  well  in 
his  particular  position.  He  is  now  in  the  prime  of 
his  life,  but  absorbed  as  he  is  in  devotion  to  the  medi- 
cal profession,  he  has  almost  withdrawn  himself  from 
the  pursuits  of  Science  and  Literature. 

Lewis  R.  Gibbes,  eldest  child  of  Lewis  Ladsen 
Gibbes,  was  born  in  Charleston,  August  14th,  1810. 
The  foundation  of  his  classical  education  was  laid  at 
the  Grammar  School  of  the  University  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, then  under  the  direction  of  the  Rev.  James 
Wiltbank;  but  his  preparation  for  College  was  made 
in  the  Pendleton  Academy  in  the  years  1823  to  1827, 
under  Dr.  Edwin  Reese  and  Henry  K.  McClintock, 
Esq.,  successively  Principals  of  that  Academy.  De- 
cember 27,  1827,  he  was  admitted  to  the  Junior  Class 
of  the  South  Carolina  College,  and  graduated  in  Decem- 
ber, 1829,  with  the  highest  honors.  He  entered  now 
upon  the  study  of  medicine,  in  the  office  of  Dr. 
Arthur  S.  Gibbes,  of  Pendleton,  and  upon  the  study 
of  Botany  in  the  fields  and  forests  surrounding  his 
father's  residence,  near  the  village.  During  the  year 
1830,  at  the  earnest  request  of  the  Trustees,  he  took 
charge  of  the  Pendleton  Academy,  and  gave  instruc- 
tion in  the  Classics  and  Mathematics,  until  a  perma- 
nent Principal  could  be  elected.  In  November  he 
returned  to  Charleston,  entered  the  office  of  Dr.  John 
Wagner,  and  took  his  first  course  of  lectures  in  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        197 

Medical  College  of  the  State  of  South  Carolina.  At 
the  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  South 
Carolina  College,  December  3,  1831,  he  was  elected 
Tutor  in  Mathematics,  in  place  of  Isaac  "W.  Hayne, 
resigned.  While  Tutor,  he  continued  the  study  of 
Botany  in  the  woods  and  sand-hills  around  Columbia, 
and  that  of  Medicine  in  the  office  of  Dr.  Thomas 
Wells.  I  have  already  given  the  history  of  the  Presi- 
dency of  Dr.  Cooper,  and  the  reader  will  remember 
that,  by  request,  the  officers  of  the  College  tendered 
their  resignations  December  9, 1834.  In  that  number 
was  Lewis  K.  Gibbes.  Though  I  have  given  a  full 
narrative  of  the  events  of  that  period,  the  following 
account  of  the  action  of  the  Board,  in  a  letter  now 
before  me,  is  too  good  to  be  lost,  and  I  beg  to  place  it 
on  record: — "One  fine  day  in  December,  1834,  the 
Trustees,  busying  themselves  somewhat  more  actively 
than  usual  in  household  matters  in  the  Campus,  rolled 
into  one  bundle  all  the  Professors,  and  the  luckless 
Tutor  who  allowed  himself  to  be  caught  in  such  com- 
pany, and  by  the  help  of  a  polite  request  to  vacate 
their  places,  quietly  tumbled  the  whole  out  of  the 
Campus,  and  then  carefully  unrolling  the  bundle, 
proceeded  to  see  what  use  could  be  made  of  the  frag- 
ments." As  the  result  of  this  ingenious  process,  Mr. 
Gibbes  found  himself,  on  waking  up  next  morning, 
constituted  acting  Professor  of  Mathematics,  in  com- 
pany with  Dr.  Robert  W.  Gibbes,  as  Professor  of 
Chemistry,  and  Henry  J.  Nott,  as  Professor  of  Belles 
Lettres,  Moral  Philosophy,  and  other  branches  not 
otherwise  provided  for!  Mr.  Gibbes  was  invested  with 
all  the  functions  of  Professor,  for  he  instructed  every 


198        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

class  every  day,  except  Saturday,  beside  exercising  the 
high  prerogative  of  voting  at  the  meetings  of  the 
Faculty,  and  acting  his  full  part  in  the  discipline  of 
the  College.  Professor  Henry  was  one  of  the  fragments 
found  fit  for  use  after  the  crash  among  the  crockery, 
but  he  would  not  allow  himself  to  be  used,  and  in  a 
few  months  the  Rev.  Dr.  Capers  was  added  to  the 
number,  as  Chaplain,  and  Professor  of  Moral  Philo- 
sophy." 

In  1835  Mr.  Gibbes  resigned  his  office,  and  devoting 
himself  wholly  to  medical  studies,  took  his  second 
course  in  the  Medical  College  of  the  State,  and  was 
admitted  to  his  degree  in  March  1836.  He  sailed 
now  for  France,  and  pursued  his  studies  at  Paris  under 
"  Yelpeau,  Andral,  Louis,  and  others.  Physics  and 
Botany  still  had  attractions  for  him;  and  he  attended 
courses  of  lectures  delivered  by  Dumas,  Dulong,  and 
others  of  the  Sorbonne,  and  regularly  visited  the 
Jardin  des  Plantes,  and  brought  home  from  the  Pro- 
fessors there  employed,  Botanical  and  Conchological 
collections  in  exchange  for  those  carried  by  him  from 
this  country.  In  November,  1837,  he  returned  to 
Charleston,  and  while  making  inquiries  for  a  suitable 
location  to  practice  his  profession,  was  solicited  by 
some  of  the  Trustees  to  present  himself  as  a  candidate 
for  the  chair  of  Mathematics  in  the  Charleston  College. 
He  was  elected  in  February,  1838,  and  entered  upon 
his  duties  in  April.  From  that  day  to  the  present  he 
has  retained  his  position.  Though  originally  a  teacher 
of  Mathematics,  his  present  course  of  instruction 
embraces  Astronomy,  Mechanics,  Physics  and  Chemis- 
try, with  as  much  of  Mineralogy  as  he  can  introduce. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        199 

Professor  Gibbes'  labors,  however,  are  not  restricted  to 
the  department  of  which  he  has  charge,  and  no  small 
portion  of  his  time  is  devoted  to  the  pursuits  of 
Natural  History.  He  has  given  to  the  Charleston 
College  the  long  service  of  twenty-one  years,  and 
while  he  has  discharged  his  duties  with  an  ability  and 
fidelity  never  surpassed  by  any  of  its  Professors,  he 
has,  at  the  same  time,  added  largely  to  the  fame  of 
the  Institution,  and  enhanced  the  glory  of  American 
science.  December  3,  1853,  he  had  the  honor  of 
declining  the  Professorship  of  Mathematics  in  the 
South  Carolina  College,  to  which  he  was  elected  in 
place  of  Professor  Williams,  resigned.  Professor 
Gibbes  has  been  most  industrious  in  scientific  labors, 
and  takes  rank  among  its  distinguished  cultivators  in 
our  country.  I  have  before  me  a  list  of  forty  of  his 
scientific  contributions.  None  of  them  are  without 
merit,  and  many  have  the  highest  value.  With  the 
view  of  giving  some  idea  of  the  nature  of  his  labors, 
I  will  remark,  that  his  papers  embrace,  among  others, 
the  following  subjects  :  Solar  and  Lunar  Eclipses;  the 
Phsenogamous  Plants;  Orbits  of  Comets;  the  Transit 
of  Mercury,  Comparison  and  Discussions  of  all  the 
observations  made  in  the  United  States  on  the  Transit 
of  Mercury  in  May,  1845;  Catalogue  of  the  Fauna  of 
South  Carolina;  Discussion  of  the  Crustacea  in  the 
collections  of  the  United  States ;  Comparative  Reflect- 
ing Power  of  Mars,  Jupiter  and  Saturn;  Tabular 
view  of  thirteen  Asteroids,  with  comparison  of  their 
orbits;  Account  of  observations  for  difference  of  Lon- 
gitude by  Telegraph  between  Charleston  and  Savan- 
nah ;  Description  of  a  new  species  of  Menobranchus ; 


200        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Notice  of  Kavenel's  Fungi  Exsiccati;  On  some 
points  which  have  been  overlooked  in  the  past  and 
present  condition  of  Niagara  Falls ;  On  a  new  Univer- 
sal Dial,  &c.  But  it  is  not  my  purpose  to  enumerate 
the  subjects  even  on  which  Professor  Gibbes  has' 
contributed  valuable  papers.  I  will  only  add,  that  he 
has  made  observations  on  difference  of  longitude 
between  Charleston  and  Washington,  between  Charles- 
ton and  Raleigh,  between  Charleston  and  Savannah, 
and  also  observations  for  latitude  of  Charleston  with 
the  Zenith  Telescope,  for  the  use  of  the  Coast  Survey. 
The  results  of  these  observations  appear  in  the  Coast 
Survey  Annual  Reports,  and  in  the  published  Chart 
of  Charleston  Harbor.  Imperfect  as  is  my  account 
of  the  labors  of  Professor  Gibbes,  enough  probably  has 
been  written  to  assure  the  reader  of  his  great  industry 
and  extraordinary  acquisitions.  I  have  only  to  say, 
in  conclusion,  that  no  one  among  us  has  achieved  an 
equal  reputation  in  the  departments  of  investigation 
to  which  he  has  devoted  his  attention ;  that  he  has 
reflected  the  highest  honor  upon  his  Alma  Mater,  and 
adorns  the  College  in  which  he -is  now  an  Instructor. 

William  Capers  was  born  in  St.  Thomas's  Parish, 
South  Carolina,  January  26,  1790.  He  was  a 
descendant  of  the  Huguenots,  and  his  father  was  a  good 
soldier  of  the  Revolution.  After  the  usual  prelim- 
inary training,  he  presented  himself  for  admission  to 
the  South  Carolina  College,  and  was  received  into  the 
Sophomore  Class  December  3,  1805.  He  left  the 
College  before  the  period  for  his  graduation,  and 
entered  upon  the  study  of  the  law  in  the  office  of 
Judge  Richardson.  In  1808  he  became  a  member  of 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        201 

the  Methodist  Church,  and,  casting  aside  his  law-books, 
was  admitted  within  six  months  to  the  ministry,  being 
ordained  Deacon  by  Bishop  Asbury.  It  is  not  my 
purpose  to  trace  this  good  man  through  his  eventful 
life.  It  has  been  done  with  great  minuteness  by 
others,  and  a  bright  page  has  be. en  assigned  him  in 
the  biography  of  the  distinguished  clergymen  of  his 
communion.  I  will  only  remark,  that  he  was  identi- 
fied with  the  growth  of  the  Southern  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  for  nearly  half  a  century ;  that  none 
abounded  more  in  labors  and  good  works,  and  that  he 
has  left  a  name  among  us  which  will  endure  as  long 
as  Methodism  itself.  Nine  years  before  his  death  he 
was  raised  to  the  Episcopal  office,  and  thousands  will 
testify  to  the  truly  apostolic  spirit  with  which  he  dis- 
charged his  duties.  He  died  suddenly  in  Anderson 
District,  South  Carolina,  January  26,  1855. 

Dr.  Capers  was  regularly  called  into  the  service  of  the 
College  June  5, 1835,  being  elected  on  that  day  Professor 
of  the  department  of  Sacred  Literature,  and  Evidences 
of  Christianity.  He  declined  acceptance.  It  must  be 
stated,  however,  that  the  Committee  on  the  affairs  of 
the  College,  under  the  powers  conferred  by  the  Board, 
had  engaged  him  to  give  instructions  in  Moral  and 
Intellectual  Philosophy,  and  the  Evidences,  from  the 
March  preceding  to  the  meeting  of  the  Board  in 
November,  at  the  salary  of  a  Professor,  and  that  these 
duties  were  faithfully  performed  to  the  close  of  the 
session.  He  was  connected  with  the  College  but  a 
short  time,  and  while  I  cannot  tell  a  story  of  long  and 
laborious  service,  his  patriotism  is  to  be  commended 
for  having  come  to  her  help  in  the  time  of  greatest 


202        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

need,  when  she  lay  prostrate,  and  in  ruins.  That  he 
could  have  achieved  the  largest  success,  had  he  selected 
this  field  of  exertion,  none  who  knew  him  will  doubt. 
But  though  the  world  was  his  theatre,  and  he  went 
about  doing  good,  the  College  will  put  in  its  claim  for 
a  portion  of  his  fame,  and  perpetuate  his  name  on  the 
roll  of  its  Professors. 

Professor  Nott,  Chairman  of  the  Faculty,  made  the 
Annual  Keport  to  the  Board,  November  25.  From 
it,  it  appears  that  on  the  first  Monday  in  October, 
Professors  Ellet,  Twiss,  Stuart  and  Nott,  met  and 
made  arrangements  to  proceed  immediately  with  all 
the  Classes.  Dr.  Lieber  on  the  first  of  the  succeeding 
week  joined  the  Faculty,  and  the  regular  routine  of 
instruction  was  settled  and  put  in  operation.  The 
number  of  students  was  as  follows: — Seniors,  11; 
Juniors,  16;  admitted  in  October,  55,  making  a  total 
of  82.  The  Chairman  says,  that  with  the  good  con- 
duct, proficiency  and  spirit,  that  seem  to  animate  the 
students,  the  Faculty  have  just  reason  to  be  contented. 
I  must  beg  pardon  for  omitting  to  include  in  its 
proper  place  the  name  of  Major  Penci,  who  was 
attached  to  the  corps  of  Instructors  for  the  year.  The 
Standing  Committee  employed  him  at  a  salary  of 
$500,  to  give  instructions  in  Fencing  and  Gymnastics, 
during  the  months  of  January,  February  and  March ; 
and  all  the  students .  were  required  to  take  lessons, 
and  the  Faculty  requested  to  enforce  attendance.  On 
looking  over  the  records  of  the  year,  a  reflection  forces 
itself  upon  me,  which  I  must  lay  before  the  reader. 
The  depressed,  I  had  almost  said  the  desperate  condi- 
tion of  the  College,  furnished  an  occasion  for  review- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        203 

ing  the  whole  subject  of  education,  and  plans  and 
schemes,  and  suggestions  of  almost  every  possible 
character,  flitted  before  the  vision  of  the  Standing 
Committee,  the  Faculty,  and  the  Board.  A  Profes- 
sorship of  Elocution,  a  Professorship  of  Agriculture, 
permanent  instruction  in  Gymnastics,  in  Botany,  in 
French  and  German,  in  Hebrew  and  Arabic,  in  Anglo- 
Saxon,  Dramatic  Exhibitions,  all  these  and  others 
were  gravely  considered,  and  some  of  them  partially 
introduced.  Amid  the  multitude  of  suggestions,  some 
had  real  value,  and  were  permanently  incorporated 
into  the  College  course.  I  need  only  point  to  the 
Professorship  of  Sacred  Literature.  In  the  end  the 
Board  came  to  right  conclusions,  and  I  believe  that 
the  course  of  instruction  was  placed  upon  as  sound 
and  judicious  a  basis  as  circumstances  would  allow. 
December  2, 1835,  Robt.  W.  Barnwell  was  elected  Presi- 
dent of  the  College.  The  Faculty  were  authorized  to 
employ  Tutors,  if  necessary,  to  aid  in  the  Departments 
of  Mathematics,  and  Greek  and  Eoman  Literature. 
A  resolution  was  passed  asking  of  the  Legislature 
fifteen  thousand  dollars  to  build  two  new  houses  for 
Professors,  and  to  enlarge  those  already  built,  and  six 
hundred  dollars  for  the  rent  of  two  houses  for  the 
Professors,  until  the  new  houses  are  furnished.  De- 
cember 15,  Reverend  Stephen  Elliott,  of  Beaufort,  was 
elected  Professor  of  the  Evidences  of  Christianity  and 
Sacred  Literature.  All  proper  appropriations  were 
made  to  increase  the  facilities  for  instruction  in  the 
Chemical,  the  Historical,  and  the  Mathematical 
Departments.  The  Professors  having  been  required 
to  deliver  Inaugural  Addresses,  the  addresses  were 


204        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

published  by  order  of  the  Board.  The  students  were 
complimented  by  formal  resolution  for  their  good  con- 
duct during  the  past  year ;  the  President  of  the  Board 
honored  them  by  a  special  speech,  and  a  circular  on 
the  new  organization  was  issued  to  the  people  of  the 
State.  Their  labors  for  the  present  were  now  com- 
pleted; the  work  of  re-construction  was  over.  The 
old  building,  it  is  true,  was  pretty  well  demolished, 
but  it  was  fondly  believed  that  a  Temple  more  classi- 
cal and  beautiful  would  rise  from  its  ruins.  Great 
harmony  had  pervaded  the  proceedings  of  the  Board. 
Men  might  differ  as  to  the  relative  qualifications  of 
candidates;  but  certain  it  is,  that  every  member  had 
in  view  the  honor  of  the  State,  and  the  best  interests 
of  the  College.  The  work  was  now  done,  and  there 
was  remaining  no  unkind,  no  improper  feeling  in  the 
Board.  It  was  an  occasion  for  joy;  mutual  congratu- 
lations were  exchanged  at  their  last  meeting;  the 
College  was  again  safe  in  the  public  affections;  each 
renewed  his  pledge  of  devotion.  "The  whole  earth 
is  in  a  moment  green  again ;  trees  whisper,  stream- 
lets murmur,  and  the  merry  month  of  Spring  is 
musical  through  all  her  groves."  What  more  re- 
mained? Ah,  lucky  thought!  Let  the  estates  be 
brought  face  to  face,  and  talk,  and  laugh,  and  eat,  and 

at  the  same  table.     There  is  something  in  this 

ancient  custom;  age  has  shorn  it  of  none  of  its 
potency.  It  has  all  the  magic  which  it  had  in  the 
days  of  the  patriarchs.  It  was,  indeed,  a  thought  in 
place.  It  came  from  the  brain  of  a  Governor,  one  of 
the  most  illustrious  sons  of  Carolina,  pre-eminently 
distinguished  for  his  sagacity,  and  for  the  success  of 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        205 

the  influences  which  he  always  brought  to  bear  upon 
men: 

Resolved,  That  a  subscription  dinner  for  the  Board 
of  Trustees,  Faculty  and  Graduates  of  the  South 
Carolina  College,  be  provided  on  the  Commencement 

Day  of  the  College,  and  that be  requested 

to  act  as  stewards  in  making  arrangements  for  the 
same.     The  Board  then  adjourned  sine  die. 

I  have  now  reached  a  period  of  great  interest  in  the 
College.  Never,  perhaps,  since  its  foundation,  did  it 
attract  a  larger  measure  of  attention.  Some  flattered 
themselves  that  its  troubles  were  now  terminated 
forever,  and  that  henceforth  no  disorder,  no  violation 
of  law,  would  mark  its  history.  The  Trustees  had 
done  all  that  was  possible.  They  had  removed  as  far 
as  they  could  the  evils  of  the  past,  and  given  all 
possible  security  for  the  future.  But  no  legislation, 
no  edict,  no  reform,  no  change  of  officers,  can  change 
the  nature  of  young  men,  and  give  the  reflection 
which  belongs  to  riper  years.  Nothing  is  truer  than 
the  old  adage,  that  "boys  will  be  boys."  Life  is 
divided  into  its  several  stages,  and  each  has  its  prom- 
inent characteristics.  That  man  is  a  poor  philosopher 
who  will  expect  of  youth  to  drop  its  tricks  and 
frivolities,  and  put  on  the  sober  demeanor  of  age. 
Youth  is  always  impatient,  restless,  impulsive,  and 
liable  to  run  into  excesses.  The  session  of  1836  then 
had  its  troubles.  Let  it  be  remembered,  however, 
that  the  disorders  were  confined  to  a  few  individuals, 
and  that  the  general*  tone  of  the  College  was  good. 
13 


206        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

The  usual  vices  among  young  men  made  their  appear- 
ance, and  the  Faculty  were  compelled  to  enforce  the 
laws  with  rigor.  The  semi-annual  meeting  of  the 
Board  took  place  on  the  20th  June,  and  the  report  of 
the  President  will  give  precise  information  up  to  that 
period.  From  it  I  learn  that  many  young  men  had 
subjected  themselves  to  the  penalty  of  suspension,  but 
the  Faculty  conceive  "that  they  discern  among  the 
large  number  of  students  just  conceptions  of  the  rela- 
tion which  they  sustain  towards  the  College,  and  an 
increasing  readiness  to  yield  obedience  to  the  laws, 
and  support  the  authority  of  the  Institution."  Under 
the  authority  given  by  the  Board,  the  Faculty  elected 
Messrs.  Wilkinson  and  Blanding,  Tutors,  early  in 
January.  The  report  of  the  President  at  the  Novem- 
ber meeting  is  of  a  gratifying  character.  The  number 
of  students  has  increased  to  142,  and  the  prospect  is, 
that  the  number  will  be  increased  before  the  com- 
mencement of  another  year.  The  College  had  not 
been  exempt  from  instances  of  individual  misconduct ; 
but  for  regularity,  attention  to  the  studies,  and  observ- 
ance of  the  rules  of  the  Institution,  the  report  asserts 
with  confidence,  that  the  conduct  of  the  students  has 
been  most  exemplary.  December  12,  Professor  Nott 
gave  notice  of  the  resignation  of  his  Professorship  at 
the  end  of  the  year  1837.  A  resolution  was  unani- 
mously adopted  that  the  President  of  the  Board  make 
application  to  the  Legislature,  to  add  five  hundred 
dollars  to  the  salary  of  the  President  of  the  College, 
and  of  each  of  the  Professors.  The  Legislature  was 
also  asked  to  make  appropriations  for  erecting  two 
additional  Colleges  for  the  accommodation  of  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        207 

students,  for  completing  the  Professors'  houses,  and 
for  erecting  a  new  building  for  the  Library.  As  the 
period  is  important,  as  it  is  an  era  in  the  history  of 
the  College,  I  give  the  "Course  of  Studies"  for  1836. 

For  admission  into  the  Freshman  Class,  a  candidate  is 
required  to  have  an  accurate  knowledge  of  the  English  ? 
Latin,  and  Greek  Grammar,  including  Prosody;  to 
have  studied  Morses',  Worcester's,  or  Woodbridge's 
Geography,  and  Ancient  Geography,  and  to  be  well 
acquainted  with  Arithmetic,  including  Fractions  and 
the  Extraction  of  Roots;  to  have  read  the  whole  of 
Sallust,  the  whole  of  Virgil,  Cicero's  Select  Orations, 
consisting  of  four  against  Cataline,  pro  lege  Manilla, 
pro  Archia  poeta,  pro  Milone,  and  the  first  Philippic, 
Latin  Composition,  or  Mair's  Introduction,  Jacobs' 
Greek  Reader,  Xenophon's  Cyropaedia,  four  books, 
and  one  book  of  Homer. 

The  studies  of  the  Freshman  year  shall  be  Adam's 
Roman  Antiquities,  the  whole  of  Horace ;  Xenophon's 
Anabasis,  six  books ;  Homer,  eleven  books ;  Bourdon's 
Algebra  to  Equations  of  third  degree,  Ratios  and 
Proportions,  Summation  of  Infinite  Series,  Nature 
and  Construction  of  Logarithms,  Legendre's  Plane 
Geometry;  Tytler's  History;  Blair's  Lectures,  and 
Rhetorical  Exercises. 

The  studies  of  the  Sophomore  Class  shall  be  Tacitus, 
including  the  five  books  of  his  History,  Germany  and 
Life  of  Agricola;  Juvenal,  six  satires;  Homer,  ten 
books;  Legendre's  Solid  Geometry,  Construction  of 
Determinate  Geometrical  Equations ;  Davies'  Mensura- 
tion and  Surveying,  including  the  Method  of  Plotting, 
and  Calculating  Surveys,  Measurement  of  Heights  and 


208        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Distances,  and  Use  of  Instruments  in  Surveying;  Heat, 
Light  and  Electricity,  as  taught  in  the  Library  of 
Useful  Knowledge. 

The  studies  of  the  Junior  Class  shall  be  Cicero  de 
Oratore;  Juvenal,  four  Satires;  Homer,  two  books; 
Demosthenes;  Descriptive  Geometry  and  Conic  Sec- 
tions, Principles  of  Perspective,  Analytical  Geometry, 
Fluxions,  direct  and  inverse  methods,  their  application 
to  Maxima  and  Minima,  Quadrature,  Curvature,  &c.; 
Chemistry;  Elements  of  Criticism  and  Rhetoric; 
Moral  Philosophy  and  Logic;  Sacred  Literature  and 
Evidences  of  Christianity. 

The  studies  of  the  Senior  Class  shall  be  Chemistry, 
Geology  and  Mineralogy ;  Select  Latin ;  Greek  Drama- 
tists; Natural  Philosophy  and  Astronomy;  History; 
Political  Economy;  Metaphysics;  Sacred  Literature 
and  Evidences  of  Christianity.  There  shall  be  Lec- 
tures, Rhetorical  Exercises  and  Compositions,  English 
and  Latin,  at  such  times  as  the  Faculty  may  appoint. 

I  conclude  my  notice  of  the  year  with  the  remark, 
that  the  Trustees  seem  not  to  have  misplaced  their 
confidence ;  that  the  administration  was  distinguished 
for  its  vigor,  and  that  all  was  accomplished  which 
could  be  reasonably  required. 

The  second  year  of  the  new  Administration  is  upon 
us.  At  the  first  meeting  of  the  Faculty,  January  2, 
1837,  Mr.  Charles  K.  Johnson,  of  Edgefield,  and  Mr. 
William  Blanding,  were  elected  Tutors.  Early  in  the 
year,  the  usual  irregularities  and  offences  of  College 
life  exhibited  themselves;  and  the  Faculty  were  com- 
pelled to  suspend  several  students.  The  President, 
in  his  report  of  May  remarks,  that  on  one  occasion,  a 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        209 

strong  disposition  to  resist  the  government  of  the 
College  was  manifested  by  the  students,  but  .the 
measures  of  the  Faculty  obviated  the  existing  difficulty, 
and  did  not  impair  their  just  authority.  The  report 
adds  that  the  students,  as  a  body,  have  behaved  well; 
and,  although  they  are  not  as  studious  as  could  be 
wished,  they  have  made  good  proficiency  in  learning, 
and  many  of  them  indicate  a  sincere  desire  to  avail 
themselves  of  the  advantages  which  are  here  provided 
for  them.  From  time  to  time  offences  exhibited  them- 
selves to  the  close  of  the  year,  but  in  most  cases  they 
had  no  more  serious  complexion  than  that  which  is 
given  them  by  idleness.  There  was  but  one  offence 
of  an  aggravated  character.  I  cannot  help  repeating 
the  remark,  which  I  have  more  than  once  made 
in  these  pages — that  it  is  vain  to  expect  a  perfect 
system  of  obedience  to  law  in  a  College.  The  severest 
trials  had  very  recently  been  experienced ;  the  College 
had  just  emerged  from  ruin;  the  Faculty  had  uncom- 
mon ability,  and  discharged  their  duty  with  zeal  and 
fidelity ;  the  Trustees  had  thrown  around  the  Institu- 
tion every  possible  guard  and  security;  the  Legislature 
had  dispensed  its  patronage  with  a  most  liberal  hand, 
the  public  had  unlimited  confidence,  and  yet  the 
Faculty  found  fit  subjects  for  admonition,  suspension 
and  expulsion.  Notwithstanding  the  presence  of  dis- 
orders, the  College  was  doing  good  service  to  the 
country,  and  there  were  few  who  were  not  profiting 
by  its  advantages.  The  official  report  of  November 
29th  gives  the  number  of  students  at  154.  The  most 
unfortunate  event  of  the  year  is  the  death  of  Professor 
Nott,  who,  by  his  learning,  accomplishments  and  ser- 


210        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

vices  to  the  College,  had  endeared  himself  so  much 
to  the  people  of  the  State.  The  President,  in  the 
report  with  which  he  closes  the  year,  congratulates  the 
Board  upon  the  present  prosperous  condition  of  the 
College,  and  adds  that  at  no  former  period  since  his 
connection  with  it,  has  there  been  equal  diligence  in 
study,  and  fewer  instances  of  disorderly  conduct. 

I  will  now  attempt  to  give  the  reader  some  account 
of  Professor  Nott : 

Henry  Junius  Nott  was  the  son  of  Abram  Nott,  one 
of  the  most  distinguished  Judges  of  Carolina.  He 
was  born  in  Union  District,  South  Carolina,  November 
4,  1797.  He  graduated  in  the  South  Carolina  College 
in  the  class  of  1814,  and  among  his  classmates  may 
be  mentioned  the  bright  name  of  Hugh  S.  Legare. 
He  had  reputation  for  talent  while  a  student,  but 
devoting  his  time  mainly  to  general  reading,  he  seems 
not  to  have  achieved  any  high  success  in  the  regular 
course  of  studies.  After  his  graduation,  he  selected 
the  law  as  his  profession,  and  in  1818  was  admitted 
to  the  bar,  and  fixed  his  residence  in  Columbia. 
There  he  was  associated  with  many  of  the  most 
renowned  men  of  that  day,  and  with  them  had  to 
engage  in  honorable  struggle  for  the  rewards  of  his 
profession.  I  need  only  mention  the  names  of  the 
Hon.  W.  C.  Preston,  Hon.  Judge  Butler,  Hon.  William 
Harper,  Col.  Gregg,  Col.  Blanding,  Col.  McCord  and 
the  Hon.  "W.  F.  DeSaussure.  To  have  reached  posi- 
tion among  such  men,  argues  no  ordinary  merit.  Un- 
der these  circumstances  he  did  attain  high  standing, 
and  a  good  practice.  In  connection  with  Col.  McCord 
he  published  his  volumes  of  Law  Reports,  known  as 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        211 

Nott  and  McCord's  Reports.  I  have  said,  that  while 
in  College  his  taste  led  him  to  general  literature,  and 
though  his  professional  prospects  were  promising,  he 
concluded  to  abandon  the  law,  and  betake  himself  to 
his  favorite  and  more  congenial  pursuit.  This  resolu- 
tion was  carried  out  in  1821.  He  sailed  for  Europe, 
and  spent  most  of  his  time  in  France  and  Holland, 
where  he  was  laboriously  employed  in  storing  his 
mind  with  profound  and  varied  learning.  After  a 
sojourn  of  several  years,  he  became  a  ripe  and  finished 
scholar,  and  peculiarly  attractive  for  his  many  acqui- 
sitions. Nor  were  the  Trustees  of  the  College  slow 
to  perceive  his  worth,  nor  the  value  of  such  a  man  in 
the  education  of  the  youth  of  the  State.  Accordingly 
December  7,  1824,  he  was  elected  Professor  of  the 
Elements  of  Criticism,  Logic  and  the  Philosophy  of 
Languages.  January  17,  1825,  he  took  his  seat  for 
the  first  time  with  the  Faculty,  and  entered  upon  the 
duties  assigned  him.  Perhaps  no  one  ever  filled  the 
department  with  more  ability.  I  know  the  fact,  that 
some  of  the  first  men  who  ever  passed  through  the 
College  were  his  pupils.  They  have  testified  to  me 
that  his  intellectual  qualifications  were  of  the  highest 
order.  Throughout  the  term  of  his  connection  with 
the  College,  he  discharged  his  duties  with  promptness 
and  assiduity,  and  is  remembered  as  occupying  a  place 
among  the  most  brilliant  Professors.  That  after  a  trial 
of  many  years,  the  Trustees  and  public  formed  a  most 
favorable  judgment  of  him,  is  manifest  from  the  fact 
recorded  in  another  part  of  this  work,  that  when  the 
College  was  reformed  in  the  time  of  Dr.  Cooper,  he  was 
retained.  He  was  Chairman  of  the  Faculty  from 


212        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

January,  1835,  to  January,  1836,  and  discharged  with 
great  fidelity  and  ability  the  important  duties  of  his 
station  during  that  trying  period.  I  may  add  further, 
that  when  he  gave  notice  of  resignation,  the  records 
of  the  Board  afford  conclusive  proof  of  the  regret 
with  which  it  looked  to  his  withdrawal.  But  the 
reader  is  curious  to  know  in  what  his  peculiar  excel- 
lence consisted,  and  I  shall  undertake  to  answer  the 
question  in  as  few  words  as  possible.  I  will  not  say 
that  he  had  an  intellect  of  the  greatest  breadth, 
and  that  he  was  peculiarly  fitted  for  philosophical 
investigation.  But  his  mind  was  very  acute,  and  his 
perceptions  clear  and  discriminating.  His  taste  led 
him  to  the  pursuits  of  the  scholar,  and  of  the  Belles 
Lettres ;  and  in  these  branches  of  learning  very  few 
among  us  had  made  equal  attainments.  His  natural 
genius,  and  his  training,  were  precisely  such  as  to  fit 
him  for  the  chair  to  which  he  was  appointed.  He  had 
read  and  mastered  all  that  was  valuable  in  polite 
literature,  and  studied  most  carefully  the  department 
of  Criticism.  His  knowledge  of  the  ancient  languages, 
and  more  particularly  of  the  Latin,  was  critical ;  and 
to  these  he  added  the  most  familiar  acquaintance  with 
the  French,  the  German,  and  other  modern  languages. 
These  were  his  favorite  studies,  but  it  would  be  great 
injustice  to  conclude  that  his  knowledge  did  not 
extend  beyond  their  limits.  It  is  only  true,  that  his 
chief  excellence  was  to  be  found  in  them.  It  is  to  be 
remembered  that  he  had  been  a  professional  lawyer, 
and  enjoyed  therefore  the  advantages  of  its  valuable 
learning,  and  its  peculiar  mental  discipline.  Nor  was 
this  all.  His  reading  had  been  of  such  a  character, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        213 

that  with  the  single  exception,  perhaps,  of  the 
sciences,  he  could  have  filled  with  ability,  any  of  the 
departments  taught  in  our  Southern  Colleges.  His 
mind,  then,  was  well  stored  with  varied  learning,  and 
he  could  exhibit  it  with  facility  and  effect.  I  should, 
in  this  connection,  allude  to  the  fact,  that  he  had 
mingled  much  in  the  world,  both  in  this  country  and 
in  Europe,  and  few,  perhaps,  had  profited  more 
by  it.  The  incidents  of  his  travels,  of  his  personal 
intercourse  with  men,  all  that  he  saw,  all  that  he 
heard,  were  worked  up  into  valuable  and  entertaining 
knowledge.  His  memory  was  extraordinary,  and  he 
rarely  forgot  anything.  This  enabled  him  to  appear 
to  singular  advantage.  It  extended  alike  to  personal 
experience,  and  to  books;  and  the  readiness  with 
which  he  could  indulge  in  apt  quotations,  was  a 
striking  fact  in  his  character.  He  had  a  remarkable 
aptitude  for  seizing  upon  the  diversified  forms  of 
human  nature,  and  nothing  that  was  very  marked, 
or  odd,  or  peculiar,  ever  escaped  him.  He  had  a  rich 
humor,  and  a  ready  wit,  and  few  turned  them  to  better 
account.  As  might  be  supposed  from  what  has  been 
already  said,  he  was  a  favorite  in  the  class-room.  He 
talked  well,  always  exhibited  interest  in  his  subject, 
and  was  fruitful  in  illustration.  He  had  great  enthu- 
siasm in  the  cause  of  letters,  was  well  fitted  for  pre- 
senting it  in  its  most  inviting  and  entertaining  aspects, 
and  very  apt,  therefore,  to  awaken  a  love  for  it  in  the 
bosoms  of  others.  As  a  writer  he  is  to  be  placed  in 
the  first  rank.  His  style  may  be  presented  as  a 
model  of  easy  elegance,  and  of  simple,  classic  beauty. 
It  is  full  of  the  spirit  of  the  great  masters,  but  yet  is  free 


214        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

from  all  servility,  and  essentially  his  own.  I  think 
that  the  finest  specimens  of  his  style  are  to  be  found 
in  his  contributions  to  the  "  Southern  Review  ;"  and 
among  these  I  may  mention  his  "  Life  of  Wyttenbach ;" 
his  "Life  of  Erasmus;"  his  " Paul  Louis  Courier ;" 
his  "Woolrych's  Life  of  Judge  Jeffrey,"  and  his 
"  D' Aguesseau."  But  I  would  be  doing  great  injustice 
if  I  limited  my  praises  to  the  style  alone.  They  are 
masterly  productions  in  their  way,  and  worthy  of  any 
man,  however  eminent,  in  whatever  aspect  they  may 
be  viewed.  They  combine  the  most .  appropriate 
expression  with  the  most  discriminating  judgment; 
the  highest  critical  ability  with  the  most  attractive 
and  varied  learning.  I  think  I  may  say  of  them, 
that  they  are  not  inferior  to  the  contributions  of  any 
other  writer  for  that  Review;  that  they  are  fully 
equal  to  those  of  Legare,  Elliott,  Henry,  or  Cooper. 
This  is  praise  enough,  but  there  are  those  who  believe 
that  he  was  superior  to  them  all.  I  am  not  disposed 
to  place  a  very  high  value  on  his  "Nouvelettes  of  a 
Traveller,  or  Odds  and  Ends  from  the  Knapsack  of 
Thomas  Singularity,  Journeyman  Printer."  It  is 
clever,  but  not  of  such  a  character  as  to  place  him  in 
the  first  rank  of  writers  of  this  class  in  our  country. 
Having  made  up  his  mind  to  devote  himself  to  litera- 
ture and  authorship  as  a  profession,  there  is  no  rea- 
sonable doubt  that  had  his  life  been  spared  for  a  few 
years,  he  would  have  accomplished  something  worthy 
of  remembrance. 

In  his  personal  and  social  relations  he  was  most 
agreeable.  He  had  great  amiability  of  temper,  and 
cheerfulness  of  spirit.  Though  sportive  and  playful, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        215 

fond  of  telling  stories  and  representing  others  in  such 
way  as  to  create  a  laugh,  yet  it  was  done  with  such 
good  nature  as  never  to  give  offence.  His  personal 
attachments  were  strong,  and  I  know  not  that  he 
ever  made  an  enemy.  He  was  generous  and  hos- 
pitable, fond  of  society,  and  acted  his  part  with  all 
the  easy  grace  and  refinement  of  the  perfect  gentle- 
man. He  enjoyed  life,  made  the  most  of  it,  and  was 
never  cast  down  by  present  calamity  or  misfortune. 
Such  was  Professor  Nott.  He  was  connected  with 
the  College  for  thirteen  years,  and  deserves  to  be 
remembered  among  its  distinguished  officers.  He  was 
removed  from  earth  in  the  prime  of  his  manhood,  when 
his  fine  powers  were  still  expanding  and  strengthen- 
ing, and  his  stores  of  knowledge  receiving  daily  acces- 
sions. Even  when  the  old  man  is  called  to  lay  down 
his  life,  there  is  to  the  reflecting,  matter  for  sober 
thought  and  solemn  meditation;  but  to  die  in  the 
maturity  of  mind  and  body,  at  the  very  time  when 
by  years  of  patient  study  and  laborious  toil,  one 
has  become  fitted  for  higher  and  more  important 
duties — ah!  there  is  something  in  this  to  arrest  the 
attention  of  the  most  careless,  and  to  cast  the  shadow 
of  sorrow  and  despondency  over  the  brightest  earthly 
prospects.  Professor  Nott  and  his  wife  were  among 
the  ill-fated  passengers  of  the  steamer  "  Home,"  which 
was  lost  off  the  coast  of  North  Carolina,  October  13, 
1837.  All  accounts  concur  that  he  might  easily  have 
saved  himself,  but  he  preferred  to  perish  with  his 
wife,  rather  than  survive  her.  His  melancholy  death 
excited  profound  regret  throughout  the  State.  At  a 
meeting  of  the  Faculty,  October  19,  1837,  the  sad 


216        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

intelligence  was  formally  communicated,  and  the  fol- 
lowing resolutions  unanimously  adopted : 

Resolved,  That  with  the  most  heartfelt  grief  we 
learn  the  awful  event  which  has  suddenly  swept  from 
life  our  friend  and  colleague,  Professor  Henry  Junius 
Nott,  and  his  companion  in  life. 

Resolved,  That  we  feel  most  sensibly  his  loss  as  a 
highly  able  coadjutor  in  our  Board,  as  a  prompt  and 
cheerful  adviser,  as  a  skilful  and  captivating  teacher 
in  the  department  over  which  he  presided ;  and  as  an 
individual,  of  a  disposition  the  most  kind  and  lively; 
of  manners  affable  and  engaging;  of  intellect  highly 
acute  and  active ;  and  of  knowledge  the  most 
diversified. 

Resolved,  That  one  of  his  many 'friends,  acquainted 
with  his  useful  life  from  an  early  period,  be  requested 
to  prepare  an  address  commemorative  of  Professor 
Nott,  and  that  the  Chaplain  of  this  Institution  be 
requested  to  accompany  its  delivery  with  such  religious 
services  as  shall  be  suited  to  the  occasion. 

Resolved,  That  as  a  token  of  respect  for  our 
lamented  friend,  the  officers  of  this  College  will  wear 
the  usual  badge  of  mourning  for  sixty  days  ;  and  that 
these  resolutions  be  communicated  to  his  relatives,  and 
published  in  the  papers  of  this  town  and  Charleston. 

The  following  passage  in  the  December  report  of 
President  Barnwell  to  the  Board  of  Trustees,  contains 
so  just  a  tribute  to  his  memory  that  I  cannot  with- 
hold its  insertion : — "I  cannot  close  this  report  without 
being  reminded  of  the  heavy  loss  which  the  College 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        217 

has  sustained  since  my  last  communication,  by  the 
awfully  sudden  destruction  of  Professor  Nott.  I  have 
too  often  had  occasion,  in  my  past  intercourse  with 
the  Board,  to  express  my  admiration  of  the  varied 
learning,  clear  intellect,  skilful  and  diligent  instruc- 
tion of  my  lamented  colleague,  to  render  any  repetition 
of  his  praises  needful  now.  I  do  not  doubt  that  the 
Board  sympathises  with  the  Faculty,  the  students  and 
the  community,  in  their  grief  for  his  loss." 

All  felt  that  South  Carolina  had  lost  one  of  her 
most  accomplished  sons ;  one  of  her  small  class  of 
literary  men.  Much  was  expected  of  him.  His  ability 
had  been  tried,  and  he  had  already  furnished  a  safe 
foundation  on  which  to  rest  the  brightest  hopes. 
There  is  something,  too,  in  a  death  at  sea  which  touches 
our  deepest  sensibilities.  He  breathed  his  last  amid  the 
howling  of  the  tempest  and  the  mighty  roar  of  waters. 
There  is  in  such  a  scene  a  terrible  sublimity,  an 
overwhelming  majesty,  which  mingle  with  the  natu- 
ral emotion  of  sadness  which  death  always  inspires. 
And  it  was  the  death  of  a  husband  and  a  wife,  whose 
last  act  was  one  of  most  affectionate  devotion ;  and  they 
left  behind  them  an  only  child  at  a  tender  age  ;  and  that 
child  a  daughter.  No  wonder  that  the  sympathy  was 
profound,  and  it  is  probable  that  among  the  many  who 
found  a  watery  grave  on  that  melancholy  occasion, 
the  fate  of  none  melted  as  many  hearts  as  that  of 
Professor  Nott. 

December  6,  1837,  Rev.  James  H.  Thorn  well  was 
elected  Professor  of  Logic,  Rhetoric  and  Belles  Lettres. 
Authority  was  conferred  upon  the  Faculty  to  elect  a 
Tutor  of  Mathematics  and  a  Tutor  of  Languages. 


218        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

The  records  of  the  Faculty  for  1838  furnish  proof 
of  no  little  disorder,  yet  the  offences  were  not  of  a  very 
serious  nature.  The  law  was  faithfully  executed,  and 
nothing  which  could  be  construed  into  a  violation  of 
it  went  unnoticed.  This  is  true  of  the  year  just 
passed,  as  well  as  of  the  present.  I  do  not  know  but 
that  the  Faculty  sometimes  went  too  far;  and  that 
Professors  reported  for  little  offences  which  were 
unworthy  of  notice.  It  is  but  natural,  however,  to 
expect  that  the  discipline  would  be  strict.  The  Col- 
lege had  recently  passed  through  the  severest  trials, 
and  the  public  looked  to  the  new  administration  as 
having  specially  devolved  upon  it  the  duty  of  main- 
taining, in  all  its  completeness,  the  supremacy  of 
authority.  No  one  can  read  the  history  of  the  College 
at  this  period  without  being  convinced  that  the 
Faculty  were  determined  to  do  their  duty.  Their 
vigilance,  their  industry,  their  zeal,  are  worthy  of  all 
commendation.  They  had  much  to  do  in  the  way  of 
discipline.  An  unusual  number  of  students  was 
arraigned;  but  it  was  not  because  of  the  greater  fre- 
quency of  offences,  but  because  they  strove  to  enforce 
the  law  in  every  particular.  It  was  not  because  the 
College  was  in  a  worse  condition  than  usual.  The 
truth  is,  that  the  improvement  was  marked.  The 
ancient  spirit  of  rebellion  had  pretty  much  disappeared; 
the  students  recognized  the  obligations  of  obedience, 
and  yielded  gracefully,  and  without  a  murmur,  to  the 
infliction  of  punishment.  This  was  a  great  point 
gained  in  the  discipline  of  the  College.  The  punish- 
ments were  mostly  for  the  sin  of  idleness.  I  beg  leave 
to  refer  to  the  Report  of  the  President,  May  9,  1838. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        219 

In  respect  to  the  general  condition  of  the  College,  as 
to  discipline  and  mental  improvement,  he  speaks 
favorably.  "  I  hope,  says  he,  that  some  vicious  habits 
have  been  corrected,  and  that  many  students  have 
made  a  fair  improvement  of  thei<r  time,  and  the  advan- 
tages afforded  them  by  the  College.  Our  punishments 
by  suspension  have  also  been  less  frequent.  I  am 
compelled,  however,  to  state,  that  slothfulness  is  but 
too  prevalent  among  our  youth,  and  that  the  active, 
ardent  desire  of  knowledge,  and  the  constant  and 
severe  application  by  which  alone  any  high  attain- 
ments can  be  made,  are  but  too  little  felt  or  practised 
in  our  Institution."  The  great  want  then,  at  this 
period,  was  the  want  of  studious  habits,  of  proper 
ambition.  March  5,  Mr.  Hawes  was  elected  Tutor  of 
Mathematics  for  the  ensuing  year.  The  President,  in 
his  report  at  the  December  session  of  the  Board,  re- 
marks, that  the  discipline  of  the  College  has  been  less 
troublesome  than  usual,  and  fewer  punishments  by 
removal  from  College  have  been  inflicted.  He  finds 
it,  however,  difficult  to  compel  or  excite  that  zeal  and 
diligence  in  study  which  he  desires. 


CHAPTER  X. 

The  Trustees  had  their  first  meeting  in  the  year 
1839,  May  8,  and  the  President  of  the  College  made 
his  report.  From  it  we  learn  that  the  deportment  of 
the  students  has,  upon  the  whole,  been  good,  and  the 
proficiency  of  the  several  classes  fair.  Professor 
Stuart  gave  notice  of  his  intention  to  resign  in 
December  the  Chair  of  Greek  and  Roman  Literature. 
By  request  of  the  President,  and  by  consent  of  Pro- 
fessor Thornwell,  the  instruction  in  Metaphysics  had 
been  committed  to  this  latter  gentleman  since  the 
opening  of  the  College  in  January.  The  fact  is  impor- 
tant, as  it  marks  the  period  when  he  took  charge  of 
a  department  which  he  was  destined  to  illustrate  by 
great  genius,  and  profound  learning.  At  this  meeting 
Professor  Thornwell  gave  notice  that  he  would  resign 
his  Chair  on  the  first  day  of  January  next.  The 
report  of  the  President  at  the  close  of  the  year  is 
creditable  to  the  College.  He  assures  the  Board  that 
the  classes  undergoing  examination,  preparatory  to 
rising,  have  exhibited  diligence  and  improvement,  and 
expresses  the  hope  that  they  will  add  to  the  literary 
character  of  the  Institution.  But  for  a  recent  disturb- 
bance,  he  would  have  spoken  "very  favorably  of  the 
behavior  of  the  students ;"  "  but  it  is  proper  to  assure 
the  Board  that  the  authority  of  the  Faculty  was  never 
in  much  danger,  and  has  not  suffered  the  slightest 
diminution  from  the  disorders  of  which  I  speak."  At 
14 


222        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

the  time  of  the  report  there  were  166  students  in  the 
College.  November  29,  on  application  of  an  Agricul- 
tural Convention  held  in  Columbia,  in  the  course  of 
the  month,  the  Trustees  passed  a  resolution  to  the 
effect,  that  the  Professor  of  Chemistry  deliver  a  Course 
of  Lectures  on  Agricultural  Chemistry,  and  also  on  the 
principles  of  Geology,  provided  that  such  instruction 
does  not  interfere  with  his  regular  duties.  At  this 
meeting  the  Reverend  Dr.  Henry  was  elected  Professor 
of  Metaphysics,  Logic,  Rhetoric,  and  Belles  Lettres. 
December  2,  Reverend  William  Hooper  was  elected 
Professor  of  Greek  and  Roman  Literature. 

Isaac  W.  Stuart  was  born  in  New  Haven,  Connecti- 
cut, June  13,  1809.  He  took  his  degree  at  Yale 
College,  where  he  graduated  with  high  honor.  He 
read  law  in  Hartford  with  Mr.  Toucey,  the  present 
distinguished  head  of  the  Navy  department,  and  edited 
for  some  time  the  "  Hartford  Mirror."  He  came  to 
Beaufort,  South  Carolina,  about  the  year  1831,  and 
assumed  the  charge  of  the  College  in  that  Town. 
From  Beaufort,  where  he  taught  with  high  reputa- 
tion, he  was  called  to  the  Professorship  of  Greek  and 
Roman  Literature  in  the  South  Carolina  College, 
being  elected  June  5,  1835.  He  entered  upon  his 
duties  on  the  1st  Monday  in  October.  It  was,  as 
the  reader  is  aware,  a  critical  period  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  College.  The  public  had  lost  confidence 
in  it,  and  this  confidence  had  now  to  be  restored.  The 
old  administration  had  fallen,  the  heaviest  responsi- 
bility was  devolved  upon  the  gentlemen  now  appointed 
to  office,  and  the  largest  expectations  were  indulged. 
That  he  discharged  his  duties  with  great  ability,  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        223 

that  he  was  all  that  was  expected  of  him,  cannot  be 
doubted.  Professor  Nott  was  Chairman  of  the 
Faculty,  and  in  his  report  to  the  Trustees,  speaks  of 
him  as  "this  talented  and  industrious  officer."  I  will 
not  venture  to  declare  his  precise  position  as  a  scholar; 
but  this  much  I  do  know,  that  his  entire  competency 
for  the  duties  of  his  Professorship  was  never  called  in 
question,  and  that  he  has  left  behind  him  a  good 
reputation.  May  8,  1839,  he  gave  notice  of  resigna- 
tion, to  take  effect  in  December.  He  returned  to  his 
native  State,  and  for  a  time  was  engaged  in  political 
life.  Twice  he  represented  the  Hartford  District  in 
the  State  Senate,  and  twice  he  represented  the  City 
of  Hartford  in  the  House  of  Kepresentatives.  His 
attention  for  many  years  has  been  mainly  devoted  to 
literary  pursuits.  He  has  published  the  life  of  Cap- 
tain Hale,  who  was  executed  as  a  spy  during  the 
Revolutionary  War,  and  has  now  in  press  the  life  of 
Trumbull,  the  rebel  Governor  of  Connecticut.  But 
he  has  in  contemplation  a  work  of  still  greater  impor- 
tance. He  has  already  made  great  researches  into 
the  early  history  of  Connecticut,  and  at  no  distant 
period  will  probably  become  her  historian.  Professor 
Stuart  commended  himself  as  a  man  to  all  who  made 
his  acquaintance.  Possessed  of  the  high  qualities 
which  mark  the  gentleman,  exemplifying  all  the  pro- 
prieties which  are  found  in  a  society  of  largest  culture 
and  refinement,  he  is  remembered  most  favorably  by 
many  among  us,  who  wish  him  the  best  success  in 
the  noble  field  of  exertion  which  he  has  selected. 

The*  report  of  the  President  for  May  1840,  is  of  a 
most  encouraging  character.     With  the  exception  of 


224        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

some  discontent  with  the  Commons,  the  condition  of 
the  College  is  declared  to  be  in  a  very  high  degree 
satisfactory,  and  the  general  conduct  of  the  students 
orderly  and  commendable.  The  Catalogue  gives  168 
students.  Only  one  suspension  had  taken  place  since 
the  last  meeting  of  the  Board,  and  no  student  was 
reported  for  expulsion.  It  is  to  be  remarked,  that  the 
state  of  the  Commons  attracted  the  special  attention 
of  the  Board.  Perhaps  no  year  passed  without  the 
expression  of  dissatisfaction  to  a  greater  or  less  extent 
on  the  part  of  the  students;  but  at  this  meeting  a 
communication  in  relation  to  it,  signed  by  one  hundred 
and  eleven,  was  received  by  the  Trustees,  and  a  Com- 
mittee, consisting  of  four  leading  members  of  the 
Board,  appointed  to  investigate  the  grounds  of  com- 
plaint, and  report  accordingly.  The  Committee  re- 
ported ;  the  Steward  was  not  removed,  but  exhorted 
to  mend  his  ways ;  the  students  continued  to  eat  his 
meat  and  bread;  the  storm  blew  over  for  the  time,  and 
authority  was  triumphant.  The  President,  in  his 
November  report  says,  that  the  College  is  in  as 
flourishing  condition  as  heretofore;  that  the  numbers 
continue  slightly  to  increase,  and  that  there  are  no 
special  causes  of  complaint  on  account  of  the  applica- 
tion, or  the  general  conduct  of  the  students.  He  adds 
that  there  is  too  little  ardor  in  the  pursuit  of  know- 
ledge, and  that  the  Commons  still  furnishes  occasion 
for  complaint  and  disorder.  The  report  gives  the 
number  of  students  as  188.  November  25,  Professor 
Elliott  gave  notice  of  his  resignation,  to  take  effect  on 
1st  of  January.  December  2,  the  Board  proceeded  to 
ballot  for  a  Professor  to  fill  the  vacancy  occasioned  by 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        225 

the  resignation  of  Professor  Elliott,  and  the  Reverend 
James  H.  Thorn  well  was  elected. 

The  following   brief  sketch  of  this  distinguished 
gentleman  is  submitted : 

Stephen  Elliott  was  born  in  Beaufort,  South  Caro- 
lina, August  31,  1806.  He  is  the  son  of  Stephen 
Elliott,  well  known  as  one  of  the  most  learned, 
scientific  and  public-spirited  men  to  whom  our  State 
has  given  birth.  He  removed  to  Charleston  in 
the  Spring  of  1812,  upon  the  election  of  his  father 
to  the  Presidency  of  the  Bank  of  the  State.  His 
Academic  education  was  pursued  entirely  in  Charleston ; 
first  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Alpheus  Baker,  and 
then  of  Mr.  Hurlbut.  In  the  Fall  of  1822,  he  went- 
to  Harvard  College,  and  entered  the  Sophomore  Class. 
He  remained  at  Harvard  until  the  Fall  of  1823,  when, 
at  the  desire  of  his  father  wTho  wished  him  to  gradu- 
ate at  the  South  Carolina  College,  he  returned  home, 
and 'was  admitted  to  the  Junior  Class  in  November. 
He  graduated  with  distinction  in  1825.  Upon  his 
graduation  he  became  a  law-student  in  the  office  of 
Messrs.  Petigru  &  Cruger,  Charleston,  and  was  admitted 
to  the  bar,  it  is  believed,  in  1827.  He  practised 
law  for  three  years  in  Charleston,  when,  upon  the 
retirement  of  a  distinguished  legal  gentleman  from  the 
bar  of  Beaufort,  he  removed  to  this  latter  place,  and 
succeeded  to  his  office  and  business.  In  1833  he  with- 
drew entirely  from  the  bar,  and  was  admitted  to  the 
ministry  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  the  Fall  of  1835, 
being  ordained  Deacon  and  Priest  by  Bishop  Bowen  of 
South  Carolina.  He  took  charge  of  the  Parish  of 
Wilton  in  December,  from  which,  after  officiating  for 


226        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

one  month,  he  was  removed  to  the  chair  of  Sacred 
Literature  and  Evidences  of  Christianity  in  the  South 
Carolina  College.  He  was  elected  December  15,  and 
entered  upon  his  duties  in  January.  He  remained  in 
the  College  until  he  was  elected  to  the  Episcopate  of 
Georgia,  in  May  1840.  He  was  consecrated  at  Savan- 
nah in  February,  1841. 

I  know  but  little  of  the  career  of  Bishop  Elliott  as 
a  lawyer.  There  can  be  no  doubt,  however,  that  had 
he  continued  in  the  profession,  he  would  have  risen  to 
eminence.  He  had  all  those  qualities  of  mind  and 
heart,  and  all  that  training  and  culture,  which  would 
have  insured  success.  At  the  period  of  his  leaving 
the  bar  of  Beaufort,  his  practice  was  good,  and  his 
prospects  nattering.  But  in  the  Providence  of  God 
he  was  destined  for  higher  labors,  and  for  a  more 
extended  field  of  usefulness.  He  was  to  be  a  minister 
of  the  holy  religion  of  Jesus,  and '  to  dispense  the 
bread  of  life  to  a  starving  world.  The  renewing 
operations  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  goodness  and  mercy 
of  God,  were  to  be  exemplified  in  his  own  personal 
experience,  and  full  of  thankfulness  he  was,  with 
burning  eloquence,  to  tell  others  of  the  great  things 
which  had  been  done  for  him,  and  strive  to  make 
them  participants  of  the  same  glorious  blessings.  His 
call  to  the  South  Carolina  College  is  one  of  the  most 
important  events  of  his  life.  The  Chaplaincy  is  con- 
nected with  the  Professorship  to  which  he  was  elected, 
and  it  was  his  duty,  therefore,  to  preach  the  Gospel 
to  the  students  of  the  College.  I  think  that  I  have 
stated  in  a  previous  part  of  this  volume,  that  in  June 
1835,  on  motion  of  Judge  Butler,  a  Professorship  of 


HISTtJRY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        227 

the  Evidences  of  Christianity  and  Sacred  Literature 
was  established,  and  the  Professor  was  required  to 
perform  Divine  service  in  the  Chapel.  I  have  now 
to  add  that  Bishop  Elliott  was  the  first  person  who 
filled  that  high  and  responsible  position.  Nor  could 
the  Trustees  have  been  more  fortunate  in  their  selec- 
tion. The  reader  will  call  to  mind  the  history  of  Dr. 
Cooper's  administration,  and  more  particularly  the 
causes  which  led  to  its  downfall.  The  religious  feeling 
of  the  State  was  in  a  condition  of  highest  excitement ; 
the  greatest  of  all  interests,  it  was  thought,  had  not 
only  been  neglected,  but  treated  with  contempt,  and 
now,  for  the  first  time,  regular  provision  was  made  for 
its  protection  and  maintenance.  A  great  public  want 
was  to  be  met — a  religion  "pure  and  undefiled"  was 
to  be  preached  to  the  youth  of  the  State;  and  from 
the  College,  as  from  a  fountain,  were  to  go  forth  the 
waters  of  salvation.  An  experiment  was  to  be  made; 
Christian  doctrine  was  to  be  taught  from  the  pulpit, 
and  from  the  Professor's  chair;  Christian  influences 
were  to  pervade  the  Campus;  and  a  noble  Literary 
Institution  was  now  to  have  emblazoned  upon  its 
portals  the  significant  inscription,  "  the  Christian's  God 
alone  is  to  be  worshipped  in  these  walls." 

Though  all  Protestant  sects  are  agreed,  as  I  conceive, 
in  respect  to  the  vital  points  of  Christianity,  yet  there 
are  denominational  differences  which  are  pressed  by 
some  as  if  they  were  essential,  and,  in  consequence, 
the  minister  of  any  particular  sect  is  too  apt  to 
be  regarded  with  suspicion,  and  therefore  to  experience 
difficulty  in  commending  himself  to  the  favor  and 
approbation  of  all.  This  is  especially  true  in  the 


228        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

College  pulpit,  from  which  all  pure  sectarianism  is  to 
be  excluded.  The  very  end  of  the  creation  of  the 
Professorship  was  to  satisfy  the  religious  public  at 
large ;  and  a  failure  in  this  would  be  a  failure  in  the  Pro- 
fessorship itself.  Most  fortunate  was  it,  that  such  a 
man  as  Bishop  Elliott  was  the  first  to  enter  upon  such 
a  delicate  and  responsible  work.  His  qualifications 
were  peculiar.  Though  a  minister  of  the  Episcopal 
Church,  his  religion  was  broad,  catholic  and  com- 
prehensive. He  could  indulge  the  feeling  of  brother- 
hood towards  all  who  loved  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in 
sincerity.  He  preferred  the  worship  and  government 
of  a  particular  communion  ;  but  he  was  free  from  that 
exclusiveness  which  would  make  salvation  attainable 
only  in  it.  Without  bigotry,  without  intolerance,  he 
could  commend  himself  to  others  upon  principle. 

It  is  entirely  conceivable,  that  one  might  have  been 
elected  who  would  have  proved  a  fire-brand  in  the 
State ;  who,  so  far  from  conciliating  the  general 
religious  interest,  and  bringing  it  to  the  support  of  the 
College,  would  have  aroused  every  other  denomina- 
tion but  his  own  in  opposition,  and  concentrated  their 
fury  upon  it.  To  have  inaugurated  a  most  impor- 
tant movement,  to  have  given  success  to  a  scheme 
about  which  there  were  many  misgivings,  certainly 
argues  no  common  ability.  The  doubts  of  all  were 
dispelled,  and  the  policy  and  practicability  of  the 
measure  fully  vindicated.  He  entered  upon  his 
charge  with  a  zeal  truly  apostolic,  and  the  fruits  of 
his  labors  were  soon  to  be  seen  in  the  love  and  admi- 
ration which  were  enkindled  in  the  bosoms  of  the 
young  men,  and  in  the  expressions  of  confidence  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        229 

satisfaction  on  the  part  of  the  public.  He  held  ser- 
vice twice  every  Sabbath  in  the  Chapel,  and  super- 
added  to  this  were  his  ministrations  in  his  study,  his 
lecture-room,  and  in  his  daily  private  intercourse  with 
the  students.  When  it  is  added  that,  like  Enoch,  he 
walked  with  God,  that  his  personal  life  was  but  a  reflec- 
tion of  the  heavenly  principles  which  he  inculcated,  it 
is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  the  gospel  was  felt  in  its 
power,  and  that  the  thoughtlessness  and  inconsiderate- 
ness,  even  of  youth,  should  bow  beneath  its  mighty 
influence.  In  his  lecture  room  he  had  to  teach  Sacred 
Literature  and  the  Evidences  of  Christianity.  Ac- 
cording to  all  accounts,  he  discharged  his  Professorial 
duties  with  great  ability.  With  a  clear  head,  a  ready 
command  of  language,  a  discriminating  judgment,  all 
proper  knowledge,  and  patient  industry,  he  possessed 
all  the  qualifications  necessary  to  the  successful  teacher. 
At  the  December  meeting  of  the  Board  in  1840, 
President  Barnwell  submitted  the  letter  of  resignation 
of  Bishop  Elliott,  dated  Beaufort,  August  10  ;  and  I 
beg  leave  to  give  the  following  extract : — "  Will  you 
be  pleased  to  signify  to  the  Board  of  Trustees  my 
resignation  of  the  trust  with  which  they  have  so  long 
honored  me,  and  my  gratitude  for  the  kindness  and 
confidence  with  which  they  have  ever  treated  me. 
Nothing  but  my  duty  to  the  God,  to  whose  service  I 
have  devoted  myself,  could  have  induced  me  to  quit  a 
station  so  agreeable  to  my  literary  tastes,  and  so 
important  to  the  well-being  of  the  College."  The 
President,  in  his  communication  to  the  Board,  bears 
the  following  testimony  to  his  worth  : — "I  think  I  do 
not  express  a  sentiment  which  transcends  the  opinions 


230        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

of  the  Board,  when  I  state  my  belief  that  no  loss  could 
well  have  been  sustained  by  the  Institution  more  to 
be  deplored  than  this  removal  of  one  who  in  every 
relation  has  contributed  so  largely  to  its  honor  and 
welfare."  Thus  terminated  the  connection  of  this 
distinguished  gentleman  with  the  College.  He  had 
served  it  well,  and  left  behind  him  a  reputation  dear 
to  the  whole  people  of  the  State.  He  was  now  to 
appear  on  a  field  of  still  wider  usefulness;  to  occupy 
a  position  invested  with  still  higher  dignity  ;  and  who 
could  doubt  his  eminent  qualifications  ?  He  was 
blameless,  the  husband  of  one  wife,  vigilant,  sober,  of 
good  behavior,  given  to  hospitality,  apt  to  teach,  not 
given  to  wine,  no  striker,  not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre, 
but  patient,  not  a  brawler,  not  covetous,  ruled  well 
his  own  house,  not  a  novice ;  moreover,  he  had  a 
good  report  of  them  which  are  without.  He  was  set 
apart  for  the  most  important  offices  of  his  Church ; 
he  was,  with  all  faithful  diligence,  to  banish  and  drive 
away  from  the  Church  all  erroneous  and  strange 
doctrine  contrary  to  God's  Word ;  to  be  to  the  flock 
of  Christ  a  shepherd,  not  a  wolf;  to  feed  them,  devour 
them  not ;  to  build  up  the  weak,  heal  the  sick,  bind 
up  the  broken,  bring  again  the  outcasts,  seek  the  lost ; 
to  be  so  merciful  that  he  be  not  too  remiss;  so  to 
minister  discipline  that  he  forget  not  mercy.  How 
well  he  has  discharged  his  vows,  let  the  history  of  his 
Diocese  answer.  He  entered  upon  his  arduous  labors 
with  the  fervor  and  energy  of  one  who  felt  that  he 
was  called  of  God,  and  appreciated  therefore  the  full 
dignity  of  his  mission.  His  field  had  large  territorial 
extent,  and  most  diligently  did  he  seek  the  lost,  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        231 

strive  to  bring  back  the  outcasts.  His  success  was  to 
be  seen  in  the  rapid  multiplication  of  churches,  and 
the  increased  interest  imparted  to  the  cause  of  religion. 
His  lot  was  cast  in  a  community  where  the  general 
sympathy  of  the  people  was  with  other  communions, 
and  where  he  had  not  unfrequently  to  encounter  bitter 
prejudice  and  perverse  ignorance.  But  who  could 
resist  the  influences  of  his  kindly,  Christian  spirit ! 
He  came  not  to  make  discord  among  brethren,  but  in 
the  unity  of  a  common  love,  to  aid  in  tearing  down 
the  strongholds  of  Satan,  and  building  up  the  kingdom 
of  righteousness.  He  proved  himself  in  all  things  an 
example  of  good  works,  so  that  the  adversary  was 
ashamed,  having  nothing  to  say  against  him.  When 
I  say  that  Bishop  Elliott  is  a  devoted  Christian  minis- 
ter, that  he  has  endeared  himself  to  the  entire  people 
of  Georgia,  and  that  he  is  as  a  shining  light  among  the 
many  distinguished  clergymen  who  adorn  the  pulpit 
of  that  State,  I  simply  state  what  is  known  to  all,  and 
will  receive  contradiction  from  none.  His  residence 
is  at  the  beautiful  city  of  Savannah,  and  he  has  imme- 
diate pastoral  charge  of  Christ  Church. 

If  attention  be  directed  to  the  Bench  of  Bishops,  it 
will  appear  that  he  ranks  among  the  most  learned  and 
eminent  of  his  colleagues.  With  Hopkins,  Potter, 
Meade,  Otey,  Mcllvaine,  and  others,  he  divides  the 
admiration  and  regards  of  the  General  Episcopal 
Church  of  the  Union.  What  more  shall  I  say?  I 
have  presented  him  to  my  reader  in  the  most  interest- 
ing aspects  of  his  character,  yet  this  brief  sketch 
would  be  very  incomplete  if  I  did  not  dwell  somewhat 
more  articulately  upon  his  intellectual  endowments. 


232        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

His  understanding  is  sound  and  vigorous,  and  his 
taste  just  and  discriminating.  He  loves  the  beautiful, 
and  his  aesthetic  nature  rests  with  delight  upon  it,  as 
it  is  exhibited  in  its  varied  form  amid  the  works  of 
nature  and  art.  As  might  be  supposed  from  the 
character  of  his  tastes,  his  mind  is  adorned  with  more 
than  the  usual  share  of  the  elegancies  of  literature. 
His  refinement  is  displayed  in  every  thing  about  him. 
The  coarse,  the  vulgar  and  common,  are  repugnant  to 
his  nature.  With  the  gross,  the  sensual,  he  has  no 
sympathy.  Fond  of  the  ideal,  he  gazes  upon  a  per- 
fection which  will  never  have  realization;  and  as 
earth  cannot  satisfy  his  longings,  he  will  take  his 
walk  into  the  airy  world  of  pure,  graceful  and  imagi- 
native fiction.  He  loves  to  mingle  with  the  people 
who  dwell  in  the  fairy  isle  of  Prospero,  or  the  sunny 
gardens  of  Illyria.  Let  me  not,  however,  be  misun- 
derstood. His  mind  is  well  balanced,  and  he  never 
forgets  the  stern  realities  of  life.  He  knows  the  world 
as  it  is,  and  no  works  of  the  fancy,  no  dreams  of  the 
imagination,  ever  interfere  with  the  quiet,  steady  per- 
formance of  duty.  His  taste  is  eminently  literary, 
and  a  great  cause  of  regret  with  him  when  he  left  the 
College  was,  that  he  abandoned  a  field  where  it  could 
receive  its  full  gratification.  Since  his  withdrawal, 
however,  he  has  still  had  leisure  and  opportunity  for 
its  indulgence,  and  few  can  claim  a  more  general 
acquaintance  with  books.  In  early  life  he  laid  the 
foundation  of  good  scholarship;  and  having  pursued 
his  classical  studies  with  care  and  industry,  few  among 
us  have  made  better  acquisitions.  In  theology  his 
learning  is  full  and  accurate,  and  will  compare  favor- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        233 

ably  with  that  of  his  most  eminent  colleagues  on  the 
Bench. 

I  have  now  brought  my  imperfect  notice  of  Bishop 
Elliott  to  a  close.  An  ornament  to  the  church  of 
which  he  is  a  member,  illustrating  in  his  life  all  those 
virtues  which  ennoble  human  nature,  well  may  the 
State  which  gave  him  birth  point  to  him  as  one  of 
her  jewels,  and  the  College  as  one  of  her  most  re- 
nowned Professors.  He  is  now  in  the  vigor  of  man- 
hood, and  who  does  not  hope  that  a  long  career  of 
usefulness  is  before  him!  Goldsmith  has  remarked 
that  Nature  every  day  produces  in  abundance  men 
capable  of  discharging  the  ordinary  duties  of  life ;  but 
she  is  niggard  in  the  birth  of  an  exalted  mind,  scarcely 
producing  one  in  a  century  to  bless  and  enlighten  a 
degenerate  age.  What  a  noble  calling  is  that  of  the 
Minister  of  God !  Who  could  brave  the  sorrows  of 
the  world  without  the  aid  of  those  Heavenly  minis- 
trations which,  in  the  name  of  His  Master,  he  so  freely 
bestows ! 

"  Beside  the  bed  where  parting  life  was  laid, 
And  sorrow,  guilt  and  pain,  by  turns  dismay'd, 
The  Reverend  champion  stood.     At  his  control 
Despair  and  anguish  fled  the  struggling  soul ; 
Comfort  came  down,  the  trembling  wretch  to  raise, 
And  his  last  falt'ring  accents  whisper'd  praise." 

May  5,  1841,  the  President  reports  to  the  Board  of 
Trustees  that  there  has  been  no  such  important  altera- 
tion in  the  discipline  or  studies  of  the  College  as  to 
require  the  action  of  the  Board.  The  number,  he 
says,  is  about  the  same  as  in  December,  and,  he  adds, 
that  we  have  still  too  much  idleness,  too  much  disorder, 
and  too  much  vice;  "but,  as  these  are  not  new  evils, 


234        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

and  I  confess  myself  unable  to  suggest  any  efficient 
remedy  for  them,  we  must  continue  to  lament,  and 
strive  to  mitigate  them."  The  most  important  event 
of  the  year  is  the  resignation  of  President  Barnwell. 
His  letter  communicating  the  fact,  was  written  from 
New  York,  to  which  place  he  had  gone  for  medical 
aid,  and  was  submitted  to  the  Board  November  24. 
The  Faculty  elected  Dr.  Henry,  President  pro  tempore, 
and  he  made  the  Annual  Report.  From  it  I  learn  that 
the  conduct  of  the  students  since  October  has  been 
remarkably  regular,  and  their  attention  to  their  studies 
exemplary.  The  number  of  students  for  the  year  is 
169.  The  Board  postponed  the  election  of  President 
of  the  College  until  the  next  annual  meeting,  and  it 
was  resolved,  that  with  the  consent  of  the  President 
pro  tempore,  and  Professor  Thornwell,  the  branch  of 
Moral  Philosophy  hitherto  taught  by  the  President,  be 
assigned  to  the  latter,  and  that  the  Board  request  the 
President  pro  tempore  to  assume,  in  addition  to  his 
peculiar  duties  as  Professor,  that  of  instructing  in  the 
other  branches  heretofore  assigned  to  the  President  of 
the  College.  As  President  Barnwell's  administration 
is  an  important  era  in  the  history  of  the  College,  and 
as  the  fact  is  important .  as  a  fact  of  progress,  I  will 
here  give  the  schedule  of  requisites  for  admission  to 
the  Freshman  class,  and  of  the  studies  of  the  several 
classes. 

A  candidate  is  required  to  have  an  accurate  know- 
ledge of  the  English,  Latin  and  Greek  Grammars, 
including  Prosody;  to  have  studied  Morse's, Worcester's 
or  Woodbridge's  Geography,  and  Ancient  Geography, 
and  to  be  well  acquainted  with  Arithmetic,  including 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        235 

Fractions,  and  the  Extraction  of  Roots;  to  have  read 
the  whole  of  Sallust,  the  whole  of  Virgil,  Cicero's 
Select  Orations,  consisting  of  four  against  Cataline,  pro 
lege  Manilla,  pro  ArcJiia  poeta,  pro  Milone,  and  the  first 
Philippic,  Latin  Composition,  or  Mair's  Introduction, 
Jacobs'  Greek  Reader,  Xenophoii's  Cyropsedia,  four 
books,  and  the  first  book  of  Homer. 

STUDIES    OF    FRESHMAN    YEAR. 

Adams'  Roman  Antiquities;  the  whole  of  Horace; 
Xenophon's  Anabasis,  six  books ;  Homer,  ten  books ; 
Bourdon's  Algebra,  Legendre's  Geometry,  Tytler's 
History. 

SOPHOMORE    CLASS. 

Tacitus,  the  five  books  of  his  History;  Germany 
and  life  of  Agricola ;  Juvenal,  six  Satires ;  Grseca 
Majora,  first  volume;  Plane  and  Spherical  Trigono- 
metry, Davies'  Mensuration  and  Surveying,  Analytical 
Geometry  and  Descriptive  Geometry ;  History;  Whate- 
ly's  Logic;  Heat,  Light  and  Electricity,  as  taught  in 
the  Library  of  Useful  Knowledge ;  Whately's  Rhetoric. 

JUNIOR    CLASS. 

Cicero  de  Oratore;  Juvenal,  four  Satires;  Graeca 
Majora  continued;  Demosthenes;  Differential  and 
Integral  Calculus,  Mechanical  Philosophy,  History, 
Chemistry,  Elements  of  Criticism,  Moral  Philosophy, 
Sacred  Literature  and  Evidences  of  Christianity. 

SENIOR    CLASS. 

International  Law,  Select  Latin  and  Greek  Drama- 
tists, Astronomy,  History,  Political  Economy,  Meta- 
physics, Chemistry,  Geology  and  Mineralogy,  Sacred 


236        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Literature  and  Evidences  of  Christianity.  Besides 
these,  there  was  provision  with  all  the  classes  for 
Lectures,  Rhetorical  Exercises  and  Compositions, 
English  and  Latin,  at  such  times  as  the  Faculty  may 
appoint. 

The  following  imperfect  sketch  of  President  Barn- 
well  is  presented  to  the  reader  : — Robert  W.  Barnwell 
was  born  August  1,  1801,  in  the  town  of  Beaufort. 
He  was  educated  at  the  school  known  as  the  College 
of  Beaufort,  until  he  reached  the  age  of  thirteen, 
when  he  went  to  Charleston,  and  was  prepared  for 
College  in  the  school  of  Mr.  llurlbut.  He  was 
entered  at  Harvard,  Massachusetts,  arid  graduated  in 
1821.  At  that  celebrated  Institution,  he  was  regarded 
as  one  of  the  most  promising  youths  of  his  day,  and 
bore  off  the  highest  honors  of  his  class.  Upon  his- 
return  to  his  native  State,  he  became  a  law  student 
in  the  office  of  Messrs.  Petigru  &  Hamilton,  Charleston, 
and  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  in  1823  or  '24.  His  fine 
talents,  his  well -cultivated  intellect,  his  high  moral 
character  soon  attracted  attention,  and  a  few  years 
made  him  a  man  of  mark  in  his  profession.  In  1826, 
he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  State  Legislature, 
and  served  one  term.  Brief,  however,  as  was  his 
period  of  service  in  that  body,  he  remained  long 
enough  to  make  the  most  favorable  impression.  In 
1829  he  was  elected  to  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States,  and  after  serving  four  years,  voluntarily  with- 
drew. December  2,  1835,  he  was  elected  President 
of  the  South  Carolina  College,  and  in  January  entered 
upon  the  duties  of  his  office.  Upon  the  death  of 
Messrs.  Calhoun  and  Elmore,  he  was  appointed  by 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        237 

the  Governor,  Senator  to  Congress  in  1850,  and  retired 
at  the  close  of  the  year.  He  has  since  been  in  retire- 
ment at  his  home,  in  his  native  District  of  Beaufort. 
I  have  thus  given,  in  chronological  order,  the 
stations  which  Mr.  Barnwell  has  been  called  upon  to 
fill.  I  cannot  thus,  however,  hastily  dispose  of  the 
matter.  A  few  facts  in  connection  with  his  political 
life,  and  the  reflections  to  which  they  give  rise,  are 
necessary,  not  only  for  the  illustration  of  his  character, 
but  for  the  wholesome  lesson  which  they  inculcate. 
Let  it  be  remarked,  then,  that  in  every  instance  Mr. 
Barnwell  voluntarily  retired  from  conspicuous  position. 
No  man  ever  enjoyed  in  a  higher  degree,  the  respect 
and  confidence  of  his  constituency,  and  few,  indeed, 
have  deserved  it  as  well.  His  eminent  qualifications, 
his  conscientious  discharge  of  duty,  were  apparent  to 
all.  If  ever  there  was  a  public  man  who  had  an 
abiding  popularity,  it  was  he;  and  that  popularity 
was  based  upon  his  well-known  adherence  to  principle, 
and  unalterable  love  of  truth  and  justice.  He  illus- 
trates in  a  striking  degree  the  fact,  that  a  public  man 
can  enthrone  himself  in  the  affections  of  the  people, 
without  stooping  to  the  arts  of  the  demagogue,  and 
pandering  to  the  prejudices  of  the  vulgar.  In  our 
National  Councils  he  fully  maintained  the  ancient 
honor  of  Carolina,  and  took  rank  among  our  most 
prudent,  thoughtful  and  soundest  statesmen.  When 
in  the  Senate,  the  State  felt  that  her  destiny  was  in 
the  hands  of  one  of  her  truest  sons,  and  there  was 
no  trust  which  she  would  not  have  confided  to  him. 
He  was  a  member  of  that  Body  at  a  most  perilous 
crisis  of  our  history,  and  I  remember  well  the  pride 
14 


238        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

with  which  the  State  looked  to  his  lofty  bearing  and 
patriotic  devotion.  Higher  honors  were  in  store  for 
him,  and  an  admiring  people  were  anxious  to  bestow 
them  upon  him.  He  was  one  of  the  few  who  could 
turn  away  from  the  glittering  bauble,  and  no  entreaty, 
no  importunity,  could  break  his  purpose.  He  saw  the 
vanity  of  earthly  distinctions,  and  found  his  highest 
satisfaction  in  the  bosom  of  his  family,  and  in  the 
faithful  discharge  of  those  quiet  and  unostentatious 
duties  which  belong  peculiarly  to  the  private  citizen. 
But  it  is  as  President  of  the  College  that  I  desire  more 
particularly  to  call  attention  to  Mr.  Barnwell.  And 
here  I  am  sure  it  will  appear,  that  he  proved  himself 
equal  to  the  position.  It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that 
when  he  assumed  the  duties  of  the  Presidency,  the 
College  was  in  a  state  of  almost  complete  ruin  ;  that 
lost  confidence  had  to  be  restored,  and  the  work  of 
construction  begun  anew.  I  know  that  he  risked 
much ;  that  the  responsibility  was  great,  and  that  none 
but  a  brave  heart,  situated  as  he  was,  would  have  under- 
taken it.  He  knew  well  what  he  had  to  do ;  the  toil, 
the  labor,  the  anxiety,  the  thousand  distracting  cares 
which  attach  to  the  position,  were  all  present  to  his 
mind.  Nothing  but  a  sense  of  duty  could  have  with- 
drawn him  from  his  beloved  retirement.  No  feeling 
of  vanity,  no  desire  to  enhance  his  renown,  found  a 
place  in  his  bosom.  He  looked  upon  it  as  a  call  from 
his  State  to  a  particular  service,  and  could  not 
refuse  obedience.  His  instruction  for  the  time  was  in 
the  department  of  Moral  and  Intellectual  Philosophy. 
This  continued  until  the  year  1839,  when  Intellectual 
Philosophy  was  assigned  to  Professor  Thornwell,  in 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        239 

conjunction  with  Logic  and    Rhetoric,  and  Political 
and  Moral  Philosophy  were  assigned  to  the  President. 
The  wisdom  of  the  selection  for  the    Presidency  was 
at  once  vindicated  by  the  success  of  the  College.     He 
pressed  all  his  powers  to  their  highest  activity.     The 
College  seemed  to  have  revived  as  if  by  magic.     He 
was  sustained  by  a  corps  of  Professors  of  great  ability, 
and  no  one  would  express  more  freely  than  himself 
the  high  praise  to  which  they  are  entitled.    The  affec- 
tion of  the  people  returned  to  their  favorite   Institu- 
tion    with    something    more    than     its    accustomed 
ardor,  and  a  common   feeling  of  rejoicing  sprung  up 
in    every  heart.     His    clear   head,    his  good    sense, 
his    zeal,    his    labors,    his   honor,   his  t  courage,    his 
love    of  justice — these    exhibited   themselves   most 
prominently,  and  furnished   a  broad   basis  for  confi- 
dence.    The  students  were  the  first  to  perceive  the 
secret  of  his  power,  and  they  extended  to  him  a  regard 
and  esteem  which  have  never  been  surpassed  in  the 
history  of  our  College  officers.     His  popularity  with 
them  was  very  remarkable.     Whatever  might  be  the 
dissatisfaction  which  seems  to  be  a  necessary  conse- 
quence  of  the   enforcement   of    authority,  it   never 
failed  to  disappear  upon   the    return  of  reason  and 
reflection,  and  his  motives  were  saved  from  all  unworthy 
imputation.      In  estimating  his   influence  with   the 
young   men,    I   think    that    his    manner    of    inter- 
course  is    not    to    be   overlooked.     That  person   is 
to    be    envied   who    can   refuse   a    request   dear  to 
one's    heart,   or    dissent   unqualifiedly  from    a  long 
cherished   opinion,  and  yet  produce   no  unpleasant 
feeling.     Mr.  Barnwell  combines  with  great  candor 


240        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

and  firmness  in  the  expression  of  his  convictions, 
great  courtesy  of  manner,  and  a  strict  observance  of 
all  the  proprieties  which  are  designed  to  regulate  the 
intercourse  of  gentlemen.  I  hesitate  not  to  say,  that 
no  student  ever  took  offence  at  a  word  which  fell 
from  his  lips,  or  its  manner  of  utterance.  As  an 
Instructor,  he  was  laborious,  pains-taking  and  careful, 
and  the  proficiency  of  his  classes  compared  well 
with  that  of  other  officers.  In  his  education  he  laid 
the  foundation  of  a  fine  scholarship,  and  from  what  I 
have  heard,  I  conclude  that  few  of  the  public  men  of 
our  State  can  lay  claim  to  an  equal  familiarity  with 
the  ancient  classics. 

In  the  department  of  Political  Philosophy  his 
attainments  reached  the  standard  of  our  best  educated 
politicians,  and  he  had,  therefore,  all  the  knowlege 
which  was  necessary  to  teach  it  with  effect.  The 
truth  is,  without  being  a  man  of  learning  in  the  strict 
sense  of  the  term,  he  has  varied  and  valuable  informa- 
tion, and  is  entirely  free  from  the  reproach  of  ignor- 
ance. He  is  a  clear  thinker,  with  a  vigorous 
understanding  and  forcible  expression.  He  is  a  good 
talker,  and  a  better  debater.  Acute  in  his  percep- 
tions, ready  to  distinguish  the  strong  points  of  a 
question,  he  well  maintains  his  ground  with  the  most 
formidable  antagonist,  and  though  he  may  fall,  he 
will  get  the  praise,  at  least,  of  having  made  a  good 
fight.  Others  who  have  presided  over  the  College 
have  had  more  genius  and  learning,  but  none  ever 
had  more  character.  He  thinks  for  himself,  comes  to 
his  own  conclusions,  but  cannot  make  the  silly  boast 
of  never  being  influenced  by  the  reasoning  of  others, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        241 

and  is  therefore  free  from  un amiable  tenacity  of 
opinion.  With  decided  views,  he  has  too  much  good 
sense  to  hold  on  to  a  position  from  love  of  consistency. 
Always  in  search  of  the  right,  he  is  ever  open  to  convic- 
tion ;  but  no  power,  no  influences,  can  possibly  make 
him  swerve  in  the  least  from  the  line  of  duty.  His 
moral  organization  is  refined,  and  his  conscientiousness 
extreme.  It  may  be  that  his  conscience  is  sometimes 
too  scrupulous,  too  tender  in  its  nature,  and  that  in 
its  struggles  it  may  embarrass,  rather  than  guide  the 
conduct.  I  have  already  intimated  that  he  unites 
sternness  with  gentleness  and  compassion;  that  the 
soft  and  amiable  virtues  are  blended  with  "the  great, 
the  awful  and  the  respectable."  He  has  acquired  the 
mastery  over  his  own  selfish  feelings,  and  most  readily 
puts  himself  in  sympathetic  connection  with  others. 
It  is  such  a  character  that  the  philosophic  writer  has 
always  held  up  to  the  reader  as  most  worthy  of  love 
and  admiration.  Need  I  add,  that  his  whole  soul  is 
permeated  by  the  most  fervent  Christian  spirit;  that  he 
is  a  meek  disciple  of  the  Saviour  of  the  world.  Such 
is  Robert  Barnwell,  if  I  have  conceived  him  aright. 
But  I  must  again  recur  to  the  College.  The  severe 
labors  of  Mr.  Barnwell  told  with  disastrous  effects 
upon  his  constitution.  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  sup- 
pose that  the  life  of  a  President,  or  of  a  Professor  in 
the  South  Carolina  College,  is  one  of  ease.  Who  can 
have  devolved  upon  him  a  more  difficult  and  respon- 
sible trust  ?  Who  does  not  know  that  it  is  easier  to 
govern  a  thousand  men  than  a  hundred  boys  ?  What- 
ever be  the  knowledge  of  human  nature,  however 
complete  the  analysis  of  the  motives  which  prompt  to 


242        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

action,  we  are  ever  liable  to  failure  when  we  make  our 
reasonings  bear  upon  youth.  And  the  cause  is 
obvious.  Their  characters  are  not  formed,  and  they 
have  no  settled  principles  of  action.  Rebellions  often 
come  "like  a  thief  in  the  night,"  at  the  moment  of 
greatest  quiet  and  repose.  They  remind  us  of  those 
great  convulsions  in  nature,  which  suddenly  burst 
forth  with  terrific  fury,  and  produce  one  wide-spread 
ruin  and  desolation.  It  is  the  discipline  of  a  College 
which  brings  the  greatest  labor;  it  is  the  eating  care, 
the  corroding  anxiety,  the  thousand  petty  annoyances, 
which  enfeeble  the  body,  and  break  down  the  spirit. 
In  1841  the  failure  of  his  health  was  so  great,  that  in 
the  Summer  he  visited  New  York  for  professional 
aid.  September  23,  he  forwarded  to  the  Board  of 
Trustees  from  that  place,  his  letter  of  resignation.  I 
beg  leave  to  make  the  following  extract: — " I  cannot 
separate  myself  from  my  connection  with  the  Board 
without  expressing  my  grateful  remembrance  of  its 
kindness.  Sensible  of  my  own  deficiencies,  often  per- 
plexed with  doubts,  and  harrassed  with  cares,  I 
could  never  have  sustained  myself  in  my  painful 
position,  had  I  not  been  emboldened  by  its  con- 
fidence, strengthened  by  its  counsels,  and,  more 
than  all,  cheered  by  the  delicacy  of  a  friendship, 
dealing  so  tenderly  with  every  error,  and  always 
uttering  the  language  of  encouragement  and  strong 
regard.  I  beg  the  Board  to  be  assured  that  nothing 
but  a  strong  conviction  of  duty  to  the  Institution 
induces  me  to  cast  my  resignation  upon  it  so  in- 
opportunely. I  take  an  affectionate  leave  of  you, 
gentlemen,  as  friend  parts  from  friend.  May  you  be 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        243 

eminently  successful  in  the  selection  of  your  new 
President,  so  that  under  your  auspices,  South  Caro- 
lina, who  merits  all  the  love  and  all  the  devotion  of 
her  children  for  her  steady  and  noble  munificience  to 
this  Institution,  may  receive  the  rich  re-payment  of 
her  generosity,  in  the  virtue,  and  sound  cultivated 
intellect  of  her  citizens." 

On  motion,  the  Board  passed  the  following  resolu- 
tions unanimously : 

Resolved,  That  the  loss  of  Mr.  Barnwell's  services 
produces  in  this  Board  deep  regret  and  great  anxiety. 

Resolved,  That  his  conduct  as  President  of  the  Col- 
lege has  been  eminently  successful,  and  conducive  to 
the  prosperity  of  the  Institution,  and  has  been  ap- 
proved by  an  enlightened  public  opinion. 

Resolved,  That  the  reputation  of  such  a  man  is  a 
just  source  of  pride  to  the  people  of  South  Carolina, 
and  his  example,  notwithstanding  his  separation  from 
the  College,  is  calculated  to  exert  a  useful  influence  on 
its  destiny. 

I  have  to  add  that  the  health  of  Mr.  Barnwell  is 
now  restored,  and  that  he  has  frequently  been 
urged  to  resume  the  Presidency,  but  declined ;  that 
he  has  been  for  many  years  a  leading  member  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  and  is  doing  good  service  to  the 
College.  The  Institution  over  which  he  once  presided 
with  such  success,  is  still  the  object  of  his  love  and 
affection.  It  is  the  only  connection  which  he  has 
with  the  public.  His  zeal  for  its  interest  is  unabated. 
No  one  has  a  larger  influence  upon  the  Board,  and 


244.        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

no  one  of  late  has  contributed  more  to  shape  its 
destiny.  Possessing  the  largest  confidence  of  his  col- 
leagues, his  experience  in  College  life  has  given  to  his 
opinions  an  almost  oracular  authority.  Nor  do  I  know 
one  whose  services  are  of  greater  value.  His  views  of 
education  are  liberal  and  enlightened.  He  is  a  firm 
believer  in  its  refining  and  elevating  influences,  and  an 
uncompromising  advocate  therefore  of  all  liberal 
measures  on  the  part  of  the  State  to  advance  it. 
Though  he  has  retired  from  the  theatre  of  political 
life,  and  given  way  to  others  to  whom  it  is  more  con- 
genial, he  has  turned  his  talent  in  a  direction  which 
which  will  bring  an  equal  amount  of  good.  His  noble 
efforts  are  known  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of 
the  State,  and  of  all  her  public  men,  there  is  not  one 
living  who  enjoys  a  larger  share  of  respect  and 
admiration.  He  is  still  in  the  prime  of  his  life,  and 
may  he  long  survive  to  shed  around  him  the  light  of 
those  virtues  which  adorn  and  ennoble  his  character. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

At  all  times  the  change  of  the  chief  officer  of 
government  is  looked  to  with  interest.  Certainly 
true  is  it  in  reference  to  the  South  Carolina  College, 
that  much  is  staked  upon  the  character  of  the  man 
who  is  called  to  discharge  the  high  and  respon- 
sible duties  of  its  Presidency.  The  gentleman  to 
whom  the  sacred  trust  was  now  temporarily  committed 
was  not  unknown  to  the  people  of  the  State.  He  had 
done  good  service  in  the  College,  was  not  without 
experience  in  the  management  of  youth,  and  had 
unequaled  reputation  for  scholarship  and  learning. 
But  whatever  might  be  his  hold  upon  the  regards  of 
his  friends  and  the  public,  his  present  position  might 
be  considered  as  a  new  and  untried  one ;  and  there 
was  nothing  in  his  past  life  to  settle  beyond  contra- 
diction, the  question  of  his  thorough  competency  for 
the  discharge  of  the  peculiar  duties  to  which  he 
was  now  appointed.  The  election  of  a  permanent 
President,  as  has  been  seen,  was  postponed ;  he  was 
already  thought  of  for  the  succession,  and  for  the  year 
was  to  be  the  object  of  the  most  searching  observa- 
tion. May  4,  Dr.  Henry  made  his  first  report  for  the 
year  1842.  He  tells  the  Board  that  he  is  instructed 
by  the  Faculty  to  state  "  that,  as  usual,  the  chief 
difficulties  in  the  government  of  the  College  have 
arisen  from  disagreements  between  the  students  and 
the  steward,  in  regard  to  their  respective  rights  and 


246        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

obligations."  Nearly  the  whole  report  is  devoted  to 
the  discussion  of  the  Commons  system.  These  quar- 
rels had  resulted  in  the  suspension  of  several  students, 
an  act  of  discipline  which  became  necessary  to  the 
maintenance  of  order.  The  report  concludes,  how- 
ever, with  the  remark,  that  when  reasonable  allow- 
ance has  been  made  for  the  inexperience  and  indis- 
cretion of  youth,  it  may  be  asserted  that  the  College 
has  exhibited  as  much  order  and  regularity  as  any 
similar  Institution  in  our  country.  "Indeed,"  says 
the  President,  "when  we  regard  the  scenes  which 
have  been  enacted  North  and  South  of  us,  those  who 
feel  interested  in  the  success  of  this  College  have 
reason  to  rejoice  that  it  has  escaped  the  perils  and 
misfortunes  to  which  so  many  other  and  similar  Insti- 
tutions have  been  exposed."  It  is  proper  to  add  that 
owing  to  the  ill  health  of  Professor  Thornwell,  he  was 
unable  to  take  upon  himself  any  additional  labors, 
and  that  the  department  of  instruction  for  the  Senior 
and  Junior  Classes,  formerly  conducted  by  President 
Barnwell,  was  now  conducted  by  Dr.  Henry,  in  addi- 
tion to  his  own  regular  duties.  The  report  of  the 
acting  President  made  to  the  Board  November  30th,  is 
of  the  most  flattering  character.  He  states  that  "the 
condition  of  the  College  for  the  past  year  has  been 
such  as  to  give  the  highest  promise  of  usefulness ;  the 
improvement  of  the  students  has,  I  trust,  been  gene- 
rally such  as  to  do  honor  to  any  similar  Institution." 
December  2d,  Dr.  Henry  was  elected  President  of  the 
College.  December  7,  the  Tutorships  were  abolished 
from  and  after  the  1st  of  July  next,  and  Dr.  M. 
LaBorde  was  elected  Professor  of  Belles  Lettres  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        247 

Logic.  Thus  closed  the  year  1842.  Upon  the  whole, 
it  must  be  said  to  have  been  very  successful.  The 
number  of  students  was  reduced  to  148,  but  the  tone 
of  the  College  was  good,  and  the  prospect  for  tne  next 
year  encouraging. 

The  Board  assembled  May  3d,  1843,  and  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  College  submitted  his  report,  with  the 
accompanying  reports  of  the  Professors.  "  In  reference 
to  the  conduct  of  the  students,  it  is  to  be  remarked, 
that  improprieties  have  sometimes  arisen  among  the 
members  of  the  Sophomore  Class,  which,  however, 
have  been  arrested  by  mild  but  firm  methods  of  dis- 
cipline, without  leading  to  any  serious  ulterior 
results." 

The  President  assures  the  Board  that  considered  on 
the  whole,  and  in  all  its  bearings,  he  has  never  known 
the  conduct  of  the  students  more  orderly  or  exemplary; 
and  he  appeals  for  confirmation  to  the  united  testi- 
mony of  the  Professors.  It  is  proper  here  to  remark, 
that  in  the  course  of  the  past  year,  the  Board  deter- 
mined to  abolish  the  old  Commons  system,  and 
substitute  for  it  a  "  Bursarship ;"  that  at  the  November 
meeting  a  Special  Committee,  appointed  for  the  purpose, 
reported  a  plan;  that  the  plan  was  adopted,  and  a 
Board  of  Supervision  appointed,  with  full  authority  to 
elect  a  Bursar,  and  enter  upon  the  new  system  on  the 
1st  of  January.  I  have  now  to  add  that  the  new  system 
went  into  operation  at  the  time  fixed,  and  that  the 
President  of  the  College  laid  before  the  Board  of  Trus- 
tees at  the  May  Meeting,  a  report  from  the  Committee 
of  Supervision.  The  Board  is  assured  that  the  system 
has  been  followed  by  a  success  greater  than  its  most  san- 


248      HISTORY  or  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

guine  advocates  could  have  anticipated.  I  remember 
well  the  joy  which  sprung  up  in  every  heart.  The 
hope  was  now  fondly  indulged  that  the  great  cause  of 
all  our  difficulties  was  gone  forever ;  that  the  stomach 
would  now  cease  its  complaints,  and  that  the  Irain 
would  have  that  supremacy  which  had  so  often  been 
denied  it,  and  to  which,  with  becoming  modesty,  it 
might  justly  lay  claim  in  a  Literary  Institution.  Dr. 
Cooper  had  long  ago  said  to  the  Board,  "that  the 
College  is  in  yearly  jeopardy  of  being  destroyed  by  the 
disputes  about  eating."  Subsequent  experience  but 
confirmed  the  truth  of  the  remark,  and  all  at  last  saw 
the  necessity  of  giving  it  all  possible  protection  against 
this  danger.  Great  praise  is  due  the  Board  for  its 
zealous  efforts,  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  move- 
ment was  in  the  right  direction.  The  principle  upon 
which  the  new  system  was  based  was  correct,  and  I 
have  no  doubt  that  it  is  the  only  principle  on  which 
compulsory  attendance  at  Commons  can  be  made  to 
work.  The  Bursar  was  made  a  salaried  officer,  and 
had  no  longer  an  interest  in  keeping  a  poor  table. 
He  was  required  to  expend  all  the  money  paid  in  for 
supplies,  except  the  amount  of  his  salary,  and  his 
accounts  were  audited  every  month.  Matters  went  on 
swimmingly  for  a  time,  but  the  future  was  to  reveal 
that  even  this  seemingly  beautiful  system,  constructed 
with  such  care,  perfected  in  its  minutest  details, 
and  commended  by  the  united  wisdom  of  the  Trustees, 
was  to  work  the  worst  results,  shake  the  College  to  its 
foundation,  and  break  into  fragments.  The  truth  is, 
that  the  Commons  had  been  odious  from  the  begin- 
ning, and  no  amendment,  no  modification,  could  recon- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        249 

cile  the  students  to  it.  And  no  matter  what  the 
safeguards,  no  matter  how  full  and  complete  the 
provisions,  no  human  wisdom  can  give  protection 
against  abuses,  and  keep  down  dissaifection.  But  I 
will  not  anticipate.  At  the  proper  time  I  shall  recur 
again  to  the  history.  The  President  remarks,  in  his 
report  of  November  29th,  that  he  has  never  known 
the  conduct  of  the  students  more  exemplary  than  it 
has  been  for  the  past  year.  The  year  was  signalized  by 
the  appearance  of  unusual  sickness  in  the  College,  and 
the  death  of  four  of  the  students.  In  consequence  of 
the  great  panic  occasioned  by  it,  and  the  apprehension 
that  the  sickness  might  increase,  the  Faculty  thought 
it  expedient  to  suspend  the  exercises  for  a  limited 
period.  December  7,  the  Board  requested  the  Gover- 
nor to  ask  the  Legislature  to  divide  the  Professorship 
of  Greek  and  Roman  Literature  into  two,  and  to 
establish  a  new  Professorship  of  Greek  Literature. 
The  number  of  under-graduates  for  the  year  amounted 
to  128. 

May  8,  1844,  the  President  submitted  his  report, 
with  the  reports  of  the  Professors.  About  the  begin- 
ning of  March,  strong  indications  of  misconduct 
appeared  among  some  of  the  students.  The  members 
of  the  Junior  Class  protested  against  an  act  of  disci- 
pline of  one  of  their  number,  and  made  unreasonable 
demands  of  the  Faculty.  This  was  promptly  met, 
and  they  were  suspended  conditionally.  Some  com- 
plied with  the  conditions,  but  fifteen  persisted  in  their 
resistance  to  authority,  and  left  the  College.  Dr. 
Henry,  in  his  report  of  November  27,  states,  after 
giving  certain  explanations,  that  he  can  with  truth 


250        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

declare,  he  has  never  known  the  College  in  a  better 
state  of  discipline  than  at  this  moment.  From  some 
unknown  cause,  prayers  on  Sunday  morning  in  the 
Chapel  had  been  discontinued  for  many  years,  and 
the  Board  very  properly  resolved,  at  the  suggestion 
of  Dr.  Henry,  that  the  Faculty  cause  prayers 
to  be  said  in  the  Chapel  on  Sabbath  morning,  and 
that  the  students  be  required  to  attend  at  such 
hour  as  the  Faculty  shall  appoint.  It  appears  that 
application  had  not  been  made  to  the  Legislature  for 
the  establishment  of  a  Greek  Professorship,  and  the 
Board  now  requested  the  Governor  to  do  so  at  its  next 
assembling.  December  18,  the  President  of  the  Board 
stated  that  the  Legislature  had  made  the  appropriation 
for  the  Greek  Professorship,  and  it  was  resolved  that 
the  Secretary  of  the  Board  give  notice,  that  the  Board 
will  elect  a  Professor  of  Greek  Literature  at  its  annual 
meeting  in  November  next.  The  year  gives  a  list  of 
132  under-graduates. 

The  year  1845  is  one  of  great  interest,  as  it  closed 
with  a  change  in  the  Presidency  of  the  College,  and  the 
elevation  to  that  office  of  one  of  the  most  distin- 
guished gentlemen  who  ever  presided  over  it.  May 
7  the  Board  convened,  and  the  Semi- Annual  Reports 
of  the  President  and  Professors  were  submitted.  The 
President  reports  the  existence  of  certain  disorders, 
and  the  suspension  of  several  students ;  and  adds,  that 
the  awards  of  the  Faculty  were  submitted  to  without 
the  slightest  exhibition  of  insubordination.  A  report 
of  a  committee  of  the  Faculty  on  the  law  relating  to 
attendance  upon  the  Chapel  exercises  on  the  Sabbath, 
was  laid  before  the  Board  at  this  meeting.  As  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        251 

matter  is  one  of  more  than  usual  importance,  I  must 
ask  to  dwell  a  moment  upon  it.  Under  the  law,  as 
it  then  existed,  a  student  was  relieved  from  attendance 
in  the  Chapel,  on  the  simple  permission  of  his  parent 
or  guardian.  The  abuses  which  sprung  up  under  this 
privilege  became  absolutely  intolerable.  So  many 
availed  themselves  of  it,  that  the  congregation  in  the 
Chapel  became  diminished  to  at  least  one-half  of  the 
whole  number,  and  the  work  of  diminution  was  still 
going  on.  Had  they  attended  elsewhere,  there  would 
have  been  less  cause  for  complaint ;  but  the  truth  is, 
that  many  procured  permission  from  their  parents  for 
no  better  reason  than  to  spend  the  Sabbath  in  idle- 
ness and  dissipation.  This  was  well  known  to  all  the 
Faculty.  Something  had  to  be  done,  or  the  Chap- 
laincy was  but  a  mockery,  and  common  decency 
demanded  its  abolition.  The  Faculty  would  have 
been  false  to  their  trust  had  they  submitted.  Under 
these  circumstances,  they  asked  the  Board  to  make 
the  attendance  compulsory,  with  certain  exceptions. 
At  the  December  meeting  the  Board  adopted  the 
report  of  the  Faculty,  with  certain  amendments. 
The  following  are  the  leading  provisions  of  the  re- 
port : 

The  students  of  the  College  shall  constantly,  season- 
ably, and  with  due  reverence,  attend  the  prayers  and 
public  worship  in  the  Chapel. 

No  student  shall  be  steadily  excused  from  morning 
and  evening  prayers  without  a  special  vote  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees. 

The  President  of  the  College  may  grant  a  dispensation 
from  attending  public  worship  in  the  College  Hall  on 


252        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

the  Lord's  Day,  and  other  days  set  apart  for  the  pur- 
pose, in  the  three  following  cases : 

1.  When  the  parent  or  guardian  of  a  student  resides 
in  Columbia,  and  desires  his  son  or  ward  to  attend 
public  worship  with  his  own  family. 

2.  When  a  student  is  a  communicant  with  some 
religious  denomination,  having  regular  worship  in  the 
town  of  Columbia,  and  differing  from  that  to  which 
the  Chaplain  belongs. 

3.  When  the  parent  or  guardian  of  a  student  shall 
inform  the  President  in  writing  that  he  cannot,  in 
conscience,  permit  his  son  or  ward  to  engage  in  the 
religious  worship  conducted  by  the  Chaplain. 

The  President  of  the  College  is  authorized  to  give 
occasional  permission  to  students  to  attend  elsewhere 
than  in  the  College  Chapel. 

It  is  not  with  the  view  of  making  complaint  that 
I  remark,  that  the  jealousy  of  religious  denominations 
exhibited  itself  as  soon  as  these  regulations  were 
made  public.  They  were  held  up  in  the  newspapers, 
and  the  most  strenuous  efforts  made  to  rally  public 
sentiment  against  them.  I  have  ever  believed  that 
there  never  was  the  slightest  cause  for  complaint. 
The  Board  acted  most  wisely,  and  I  trust  that  there 
will  never  be  a  relaxation  of  the  rules.  They  have 
saved  the  consciences  of  the  students,  and  their  parents, 
and  what  more,  with  reason,  can  be  asked  ?  It  must 
be  remembered  that  attendance  in  the  Chapel  is  as 
much  a  part  of  the  organism  of  the  College,  as 
attendance  upon  the  Classical  or  Mathematical  Profes- 
sor. The  reader  will  call  to  mind  the  history  of  Dr. 
Cooper's  administration,  which  has  already  been 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        253 

given,  and  recur  to  the  particular  grounds  of  opposition 
to  it.  Public  opinion  demanded  that  the  religious 
interest  of  the  College  be  given  prominence,  and  the 
Trustees  but  reflected  it.  Regular  and  stated  services 
were  ordered  to  be  held  in  the  Chapel  on  the  Sabbath, 
and  they  were  guarded  only  by  those  provisions  which 
were  necessary  to  impart  something  like  stability  to 
them. 

November  26,  Dr.  Henry  made  his  Annual  Report 
to  the  Board.  The  principal  disorder  of  the  year  was 
a  serious  difficulty  between  the  students  and  the  mar- 
shals of  the  town,  in  which  "the  students  were 
considerably  worsted;"  yet  he  makes  a  good  report  of 
"  the  morals,  manners  and  general  quiet  and  order"  of 
the  College.  A  committee  was  appointed  to  inquire 
into  and  report  upon  the  state  of  the  College.  Pro- 
fessors Thornwell  and  Hooper  gave  notice  of  resigna- 
tion of  their  respective  Chairs. 

November  28,  the  Committee  appointed  on  the  state 
of  the  College  recommended  that  the  Presidency  be 
declared  vacant,  and  that  the  Professorship  of  Greek 
Literature  be  tendered  to  Dr.  Henry.  The  Board 
entered  at  once  upon  an  election,  and  Dr.  Henry  was 
elected  Professor.  Immediately  thereafter,  William 
C.  Preston  was  elected  President.  The  Board  refused 
to  accept  the  resignation  of  Professor  Thornwell. 
November  29,  Professor  Hooper  was  appointed  to  act 
as  President  until  the  first  of  January.  By  arrange- 
ment between  Professor  Hooper  and  Dr.  Henry,  the 
duties  of  the  President,  at  the  Commencement  Exer- 
cises, were  discharged  by  the  latter.  December  3,  the 
Belles  Lettres  Department  was  assigned  to  the  Presi- 
16 


254        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

dent  elect;  Intellectual  Philosophy  to  the  Professor  of 
Khetoric  and  Logic;  Moral  Philosophy  to  the  Pro- 
fessor of  Sacred  Literature;  and  Political  Philosophy 
to  the  Professor  of  History  and  Political  Economy. 
December  11,  Professor  Hooper's  resignation  was 
accepted,  to  take  effect  on  the  1st  of  January,  1847. 
The  number  of  students  for  the  year  was  122. 

Monday  January  5,  1846,  Mr.  Preston  entered 
upon  his  duties  as  President  of  the  College.  The 
state  of  affairs  for  the  first  half  of  the  year  can  be 
satisfactorily  ascertained  by  reference  to  the  report  of 
the  President  made  to  the  Board  May  6,  and  a  very 
full  and  elaborate  report  of  a  Special  Committee  on 
the  reports  of  the  President  and  Professors  of  the 
College.  Some  flagrant  instances  of  disorder  had 
occurred,  and  the  Faculty  promptly  enforced  the  dis- 
cipline of  the  College  by  suspending  several  students, 
and  reporting  one  for  expulsion.  The  President  re- 
marks, that  he  is  unable  to  compare  the  condition  of 
the  College  now  and  at  former  periods,  but  he  feels 
himself  authorized  to  say  to  the  Trustees,  that  there 
is  a  fair  degree  of  order,  morality  and  industry,  and 
indications  of  a  disposition  to  advance  and  improve. 
The  Committee  report  favorably  on  the  general  state 
of  the  College,  and  make  some  very  important  sugges- 
tions. Among  them  is  the  suggestion  that  the  Board 
formally  approve  the  design  previously  expressed,  of 
introducing  instruction  in  Human  Physiology  to  some 
extent,  and  that  a  certain  sum  of  money  be  appropriated 
for  the  purpose  of  procuring  the  necessary  means 
of  illustration.  A  resolution  to  this  effect  was  sub- 
mitted and  adopted  by  the  Board,  and  thus  a  most 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        255 

interesting  and  useful  branch  of  knowledge  added  to 
the  regular  curriculum.  At  the  November  meeting, 
1846,  Charles  P.  Pelham  was  elected  Professor  of 
Roman  Literature,  and  December  28  took  his  seat  at 
the  Board  of  the  Faculty.  At  this  session  Professor 
Twiss  vacated  the  Mathematical  Chair,  and  Matthew 
J.  Williams  was  elected  his  successor. 

I  have  failed  in  my  efforts  to  procure  material  for 
a  sketch  of  Professor  Twiss.  He  was  born  in  the 
State  of  New  York — I  think  in  1804 — and  graduated 
at  the  West  Point  Academy.  He  was  conducting  a 
Classical  School  in  Augusta,  Georgia,  when  elected  to 
a  Professorship  in  the  South  Carolina  College.  The 
records  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  inform  us  that  he 
was  elected  June  5,  1835,  and  he  is  styled  "Thomas 
S.  Twiss,  of  Troy,  New  York."  He  continued  in  the 
College  until  December  1846,  when  he  resigned  for 
the  purpose  of  taking  the  superintendency  of  some 
Iron  Works  in  Spartanburg  District.  There  he  re- 
mained for  a  few  years,  and  then  returned  to  his 
former  home  in  New  York.  The  records  of  the 
College  for  the  period  of  his  connection  prove  his 
great  industry.  If  I  were  called  upon  to  mention  the 
quality  for  which  he  was  more  remarkable  than  any 
College  officer  with  whom  I  have  been  associated,  I 
would  say  punctuality.  With  the  exception  of  a 
brief  period,  when  he  nearly  lost  his  life  from  the  un- 
expected explosion  of  a  keg  of  gunpowder  during  the 
progress  of  a  fire  in  Columbia,  he  was  ever  at  his 
place  when  a  duty  was  to  be  discharged.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  he  was  master  of  all  the  mathematical 
knowledge  which  is  demanded  by  our  College  curricu- 
lum, for  his  opportunities  in  this  respect  had  been 


256        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAEOLINA  COLLEGE. 

extraordinary.  I  will  not  say,  however,  that  he  has 
not  been  surpassed  by  others  who  have  occupied  the 
Chair,  or  that  there  have  not  been  those  who  were 
his  superiors  in  the  talent  for  teaching.  Let  it  not  be 
suspected  that  I  am  reluctant  to  do  him  justice.  He 
was  a  Professor  for  upwards  of  ten  years,  and  there  is 
no  doubt  that  he  rendered  valuable  service  to  the  Col- 
lege. He  has  left  behind  him  great  reputation  as  a 
disciplinarian.  He  arraigned  more  offenders  than  any 
other  two  officers  of  the  Faculty,  and  it  is  hardly 
saying  too  much  to  add,  that  he  was  for  a  long  period 
a  terror  to  evil  doers.  It  was  a  common  notion  that 
he  was  on  the  watch  throughout  the  night,  and  there 
were  those  who  believed  that  for  weeks  together  the 
God  of  Sleep  withheld  his  sweet,  oblivious  influences 
from  him. 

The  Catalogue  for  the  year  gives  127  under- 
graduates, and  ten  resident  graduates.  The  instances 
of  disorder  to  be  found  on  the  Faculty  record  at  the 
close  of  the  year  are  not  of  a  serious  character,  and 
the  condition  of  the  College  was  good. 

The  Eeverend  William  Hooper,  D.  D.,  is  the  grand 
son  of  William  Hooper,  a  member  of  the  first  Contin- 
ental Congress,  and  one  of  the  signers  of  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence.  He  was  born,  it  is  believed,  at 
Hillsborough,  North  Carolina,  and  prepared  for  Col- 
lege by  Andrew  Flinn,  a  graduate,  and  successively 
Tutor  and  Professor  of  Languages  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  North  Carolina.  Dr.  Hooper  graduated  at 
that  University  in  1809,  at  the  early  age  of  six- 
teen, with  the  first  distinction  in  his  class.  In  1817 
he  was  elected  Professor  of  Languages  in  that 
Institution,  and  shortly  after  took  orders  in  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        257 

Episcopal  Church.  In  1822  he  resigned  his  Profes- 
ship,  and  became  Rector  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in 
Fayetteville.  There  he  remained  for  three  years, 
when  he  again  accepted  a  Professorship  in  the  Univer- 
sity, which  he  resigned  at  the  close  of  1827  for  the 
purpose  of  accepting  the  Presidency  of  the  Furman 
Theological  Institute  at  Winnsborough,  South  Caro- 
lina. It  is  to  be  remarked,  that  this  Institution  is 
connected  with  the  Baptist  Denomination,  and  that 
Dr.  Hooper  shortly  before  his  election  had  left  the 
Episcopal  Church,  and  gone  into  the  Baptist  pulpit. 
December  2,  1839,  he  was  elected  Professor  of  Greek 
and  Roman  Literature  in  the  South  Carolina  College, 
in  place  of  Professor  Stuart,  resigned.  He  entered 
upon  his  duties  early  in  the  year  1840.  There  can 
be  no  doubt  of  his  classical  attainments,  and  of  his 
complete  intellectual  qualifications  for  the  task 
imposed  upon  him.  He  had  considerable  training 
in  professorial  life,  and  had  profited  by  it.  His 
knowledge  was  exact,  his  mind  disciplined,  and  his 
habits  patient  and  laborious.  I  have  never  known  a 
more  honest  and  careful  teacher.  At  the  close  of 
Dr.  Henry's  administration,  it  will  be  remembered 
that  the  Hon.  William  C.  Prest6n  was  elected  his 
successor.  Dr.  Hooper  was  now  appointed  by  the 
Board  to  act  as  President  until  the  1st  of  January 
succeeding.  November  29,  1845,  he  tendered  his 
resignation  as  Professor,  and  it  was  accepted,  to  take 
effect  on  the  1st  of  January,  1847.  Professor  Pelham 
was  elected  to  the  Chair  the  November  meeting  pre- 
ceding, and  Dr.  Hooper,  at  the  close  of  the  year  1846, 
retired  from  the  College.  He  accepted  the  Presidency 


258        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

of  Wake  Forest  College,  in  North  Carolina,  but  at 
present  is  the  President  of  a  highly  respectable  Female 
College  in  that  State. 

I  have  not  much  more  to  add  to  this  very  brief 
sketch.  Dr.  Hooper  is  not  ambitious  of  authorship, 
and  has  written  very  little.  He  is  amiable  in  his 
character,  very  sensitive,  and  shrinks  at  the  idea  of 
being  brought  in  contact  with  the  censorious  public. 
He  has  the  rich  graces  of  a  fervent  piety,  and  is 
entitled  to  every  regard  for  the  beautiful  consistency 
of  his  Christian  life. 

Among  the  important  proceedings  of  the  Faculty 
for  the  year  1847,  may  be  mentioned  a  resolution  in 
reference  to  the  Annual  Catalogue,  which  provided 
that  in  future  the  names  of  the  students,  on  whom 
honors  and  appointments  had  been  conferred,  should 
be  embraced  in  the  publication.  To  some  this  may 
seem  to  be  a  small  matter;  but  to  those  who  have  had 
experience  in  the  education  and  training  of  youth,  it 
will  appear  very  differently.  No  proper  effort  should 
be  spared  to  stimulate  ambition,  and  provide  appro- 
priate rewards  for  the  diligent  and  studious.  It  was 
•the  beginning  of  a  good  work,  which  time  was  to 
develope  into  a  system  that  should  include  all  the 
meritorious  of  all  the  classes.  May  8,  Mr.  Preston 
submitted  his  Semi- Annual  Report  to  the  Trustees.  He 
assures  the  Board  that  the  general  condition  of  the 
College  is  prosperous ;  that  the  students  exhibit  a  fair 
degree  of  good  morals,  good  manners  and  industry; 
that  few  acts  of  discipline  have  been  necessary,  and  that 
no  one  is  reported  for  expulsion.  The  Commons 
system,  even  under  the  modified  form  of  the  Bursary, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        259 

continued  to  create  dissatisfaction,  and  the  Faculty 
appointed  a  Committee  to  report  upon  the  subject, 
with  the  view  of  having  said  report  laid  before  the 
Board  of  Trustees.  At  this  meeting  the  report  was 
submitted,  and  is  found  among  the  proceedings  of  the 
Board.  It  may  be  proper  to  add,  that  it  received  the 
unanimous  approval  of  the  Faculty.  It  recommended 
the  abolition  of  the  present  system,  and  the  substitu- 
tion of  another,  the  leading  provision  of  which  was  to 
give  the  Faculty  the  power  of  licensing  boarding 
houses  for  the  students,  under  certain  regulations. 
The  Board  persevered  in  the  old  system,  but  the 
future  will  reveal  that  the  recommendation  of  the 
Faculty  was  judicious,  and  that  at  last  it  was  adopted. 
November  24,  the  President  made  his  report,  with  the 
accompanying  reports  of  the  Professors.  He  states 
that  the  general  condition  of  the  College  is  prosper- 
ous; that  there  is  a  tolerable  degree  of  application  on 
the  part  of  the  students,  and  that  their  conduct  and 
deportment  on  the  whole  are  entitled  to  commenda- 
tion. He  expresses  his  regret  to  the  Board  for  the 
non-attendance  of  the  Trustees  upon  the  final  ex- 
amination of  the  Senior  Class,  and  suggests  that 
arrangements  be  made  for  the  attendance  of  Trustees, 
or  other  intelligent  gentlemen,  who  will  make  an 
official  report  of  the  examination.  He  further  sug- 
gests that  the  members  of  such  Board  of  Examiners,  or 
Visitors,  be  allowed  such  a  per  diem  compensation  as 
will  defray  expenses.  November  29,  it  was  resolved 
by  the  Board  that  at  each  Annual  Meeting  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  three  members  of  the  Board  and 
seven  gentlemen,  to  be  selected  from  different  parts  of 


260        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

the  State,  be  appointed  Visitors,  to  attend  the  final 
examination  of  the  Senior  Class,  and  that  they  be  paid 
$3.00  per  diem  for  their  services,  from  the  time  they 
leave  home  until  they  return.  The  Catalogue  for  the 
year  gives  a  list  of  two  resident  graduates,  and  169 
under-graduates,  and  it  is  stated  that  several  others 
were  anxious  to  become  resident  graduates,  but  were 
excluded  by  want  of  room.  One  of  the  interesting 
facts  of  the  year  is,  that  the  College  did  not  afford 
proper  accommodations  for  its  students,  and  the  Board 
of  Trustees  authorized  the  Faculty  to  rent  apartments 
as  near  the  College  as  practicable. 

The  President,  in  his  report  of  May  3, 1848,  informs 
the  Board  that  a  riot  had  taken  place  in  the  month 
of  April,  between  some  students  and  the  marshals  of 
the  town,  which,  for  the  time,  produced  a  state  of  feel- 
ing in  the  College  which  excited  his  profound  regret. 
Five  students  were  suspended.  The  President  assures 
the  Board,  however,  that  the  ordinary  routine  of  Col- 
lege duties  has  gone  on  with  an  increased  degree  of 
order  and  diligence.  Professor  Ellet  gave  notice  of 
his  resignation  of  the  Chair  of  Chemistry,  and  it  was 
accepted,  to  take  effect  on  the  Wednesday  after  the 
fourth  Monday  in  November  next.  November  29, 
the  Board  assembled,  and  the  Annual  Report  of  the 
President  was  submitted ;  and  it  was  of  such  a  char- 
acter as  to  give  the  highest  satisfaction  to  the  friends 
of  the  College.  "I  am  happy,"  says  the  President, 
"to  be  able  to  announce  to  the  Board,  that  the  Insti- 
tution is  prosperous,  and  in  my  judgment  fulfilling  the 
just  expectations  of  the  State.  The  state  of  discipline, 
the  manners  and  morals  of  the  students,  and  the  large 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        261 

number  in  College,  not  only  authorize,  but  require  me 
to  express  this  opinion."  He  informs  the  Board  that 
the  appropriation  made  by  the  last  Legislature  for  the 
erection  of  new  buildings,  had  been  expended,  and 
that  accommodations  now  existed  for  sixty  additional 
students.  December  1,  the  Board  of  Visitors  made 
its  report  upon  the  final  examination  of  the  Senior 
Class.  The  examination  is  pronounced  thorough  and 
satisfactory.  There  is  an  important  suggestion  in  this 
report,  which  is  worthy  of  notice,  as  it  was  adopted. 
The  suggestion  is,  that  the  June  examination  of  the 
Senior  Class  be  dispensed  with,  and  that  the  final 
examination  embrace  all  the  studies  of  the  Senior 
year.  The  Visitors  make  another  suggestion,  which 
was  adopted.  This  suggestion  is,  that  the  first  week 
in  December  be  substituted  for  the  first  week  in  Octo- 
ber, for  the  examination  of  applicants.  December  2, 
Richard  T.  Brumby  was  elected  Professor  of  Chemistry. 
The  number  of  students,  including  two  resident 
graduates,  is  reported  as  221, 

The  mail  of  last  evening  brought  me  the  intelligence 
of  the  death  of  Professor  Ellet;  and  under  the  influ- 
ence of  the  emotions  which  such  an  event  is  calculated 
to  awaken,  I  sit  down  to  offer  the  sincere  tribute  of 
long  association  and  friendship.  I  have  before  me 
his  letter,  written  a  few  months  ago,  and  I  read  now 
with  melancholy  interest  his  facetious  remark,  "  that 
I  am  not  particularly  ambitious  of  the  honor  of  hav- 
ing my  life  taken;  but  in  as  much  as  you  think  it 
proper,  and  are  to  be  yourself  the  executioner,  I  yield 
in  the  hope  of  being  dealt  with  as  mercifully  as  cir- 
cumstances will  permit." 


262        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

William  H.  Ellet  was  born  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
November  1st,  1806.  His  parents  were  natives  of  the 
State  of  New  Jersey.  After  the  usual  scholastic 
preparation,  he  entered  the  Freshman  Class  of  Colum- 
bia College,  New  York,  in  the  year  1820,  and 
graduated  in  1824.  Shortly  afterwards  he  commenced 
the  study  of  Medicine  at  the  College  of  Physicians 
and  Surgeons,  and  entered  the  office  of  Dr.  Macneven, 
the  Professor  of  Chemistry  in  that  Institution.  In 
consequence  of  a  disagreement  between  the  Trustees 
and  Faculty,  the  latter  seceded  in  a  body,  and  founded 
the  Kutgers  Medical  College,  to  which  he  and  most 
of  the  students  followed  them.  There  he  took  his 
medical  degree,  and  the  gold  medal  for  that  year  was 
awarded  him.  From  that  time  to  1831,  he  was 
engaged  in  chemical  researches,  and  gave  several 
courses  of  lectures  in  different  public  institutions, 
among  which  may  be  mentioned  the  Mechanics'  Insti- 
tute, and  the  College  of  Pharmacy.  He  has  told  me 
that  he  has  had  as  many  as  one  thousand  persons  to 
purchase  his  ticket  for  a  single  course  of  lectures.  In 
183],  his  reputation  as  a  lecturer  was  so  high,  that 
he  received  the  appointment  of  Lecturer  on  Chemistry 
in  Columbia  College,  and  in  the  year  succeeding,  the 
Lectureship  was  raised  to  a  Professorship.  I  am  not 
entirely  sure,  but  I  think  Dr.  Ellet  left  Columbia 
College  in  a  short  time,  and  had  no  connection  with 
that  Institution  at  the  period  of  his  election  to  a  Pro- 
fessorship in  the  South  Carolina  College.  Upon  the 
downfall  of  the  Cooper  administration,  all  the  chairs 
were  vacated,  and  of  course  a  Professor  of  the 
Chemical  department  had  to  be  elected.  1  know  that 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        263 

Dr.  Cooper  put  Dr.  Ellet  in  nomination,  and  I  have 
always  understood  that  on  a  visit  to  New  York,  he 
had  spent  several  days  in  his  laboratory,  and 
was  so  impressed  by  his  genius  and  knowledge 
in  his  particular  department,  that  he  pronounced 
himself  a  fool  in  the  comparison.  June  4th,  1835, 
Dr.  Ellet  was  elected  Professor  of  Chemistry,  Mine- 
ralogy and  Geology  in  the  College.  I  have  now  to 
speak  of  him  as  the  head  of  an  important  branch  of 
knowledge.  I  made  his  acquaintance  four  years  after 
he  entered  upon  his  duties,  and  though  not  then  a 
Professor  in  the  College,  I  attended  his  lectures  occa- 
sionally. In  December,  1842,  I  was  elected  to  a 
Professorship,  and  our  relations  became  intimate,  and  so 
continued,  without  interruption,  to  the  period  of  his 
resignation.  I  mention  this,  because  it  gave  me 
opportunities  for  knowing  the  character  and  extent  of 
his  intellectual  attainments,  which  are  not  given  in 
a  laboratory.  As  a  teacher  of  Chemistry,  he  had 
probably  no  superior  in  the  Union.  Most  true  is  it, 
that  none  has  appeared  in  our  walls  who  can  lay  claim 
to  higher  excellence.  Fully  possessed  of  all  the 
knowledge  of  his  department  of  science,  he  had  a 
talent  for  communicating  it  which  I  have  never  known 
surpassed.  His  conceptions  were  clear,  and  his  power 
of  language  most  extraordinary.  I  have  never  met 
one  whose  ideas  were  more  precise  and  determinate. 
There  was  no  confusion,  no  jumbling.  He  came  fully 
up  to  the  law  of  Quintilian,  that  you  must  communi- 
cate your  ideas,  not  in  such  a  way  that  one  may 
understand  if  he  will,  but  that  he  must  understand 
whether  he  will  or  not.  He  was  the  immediate  sue- 


264        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

cessor  of  Dr.  Cooper;  and  it  is  praise  enough  to  say, 
that  in  the  knowledge  which  appertains  to  the  depart- 
ment, he  was  far  his  superior,  and  as  a  teacher  and 
lecturer,  may  fairly  lay  claim  to  an  equality.  His 
manner  was  earnest  and  enthusiastic ;  he  was  absorbed 
by  his  subject,  and  for  the  time  seemed  to  have  forgotten 
everything  else.  He  lectured  without  notes,  was  pecu- 
liarly rapid  in  his  utterance,  but  the  most  perfect  order 
of  thought  was  exhibited  throughout,  and  every  topic 
presented  in  all  its  completeness  and  perfection. 
Nothing  was  left  unfinished,  and  his  lectures,  though 
extemporaneous,  had  all  the  finish  of  careful  prepara- 
tion, and  would  have  served  as  models  of  scientific 
discussion.  It  would  be  great  injustice  if  I  were  to 
omit  calling  attention  to  the  fullness  of  his  experi- 
mental illustrations.  I  believe  that  in  this  he  was 
never  surpassed,  and  that  a  great  deal  of  his  effect  as  a 
teacher  was  due  to  it.  To  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
his  department,  he  added  wonderful  skill  in  manipula- 
tion, and  he  properly  concluded  that  in  no  other  way 
could  he  so  easily  arouse  the  attention  of  the  young, 
and  give  attractiveness  to  the  study.  I  have  reason 
to  believe  that  his  Chemical  course  was  more  exten- 
sive than  that  pursued  in  any  other  College  in 
the  country,  and  more  fully  and  beautifully  illustrated. 
Nor  was  there  ever  a  disappointment.  Among  the 
many  hundred  graduates  who  partook  of  his  instruc- 
tions, I  doubt  whether  one  can  be  found  who  ever 
witnessed  a  failure.  And  it  was  the  more  wonderful, 
as  his  laboratory  was  poorly  furnished  with  apparatus. 
The  truth  is,  that  among  his  other  rich  endowments, 
he  had  great  mechanical  talent;  and  from  the  frag- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        265 

ments  of  broken  apparatus,  to  be  found  on  his  shelves 
and  in  his  cases,  he  could  always  extemporize  an 
apparatus  with  which  to  perform  the  most  striking  and 
beautiful  experiments.  He  had,  too,  a  courage  on 
such  occasions  which  bordered  upon  rashness.  There 
was  no  experiment,  however  hazardous,  which  he 
would  not  undertake,  and  more  than  once  has  it  been 
my  lot  to  see  his  laboratory  emptied,  while  he  alone 
would  remain  calm  and  unmoved,  and  carry  it  on  to 
its  conclusion.  Dr.  Ellet  made  no  pretensions  to  an 
intimate  knowledge  of  Geology  and  Mineralogy  as 
separate  and  independent  sciences.  But  he  was  by  no 
means  ignorant  of  them.  He  looked  at  them  with 
the  eye  of  the  chemist,  and  had  pursued  them  only 
so  far  as  he  judged  necessary  for  his  chemical 
researches  and  investigations. 

In  presenting  his  character  as  a  Professor,  and  in 
attempting  to  estimate  the  value  of  his  labors,  I  must 
remark  that  he  not  only  made  his  lecture-room  attrac- 
tive to  the  students  of  the  College,  but  gave  it  great 
prominence  among  the  people  of  Columbia.  The 
students  from  all  the  medical  offices,  and  many  of 
the  physicians,  were  constant  attendants  ;  and  it  was 
not  a  rare  spectacle  to  see  his  benches  crowded  with  a 
large  portion  of  the  intelligence,  and  sometimes  with 
no  contemptible  infusion  of  the  beauty  of  the  place. 
I  may  say,  then,  that  he  made  Chemistry  popular, 
and  imparted  to  it  an  importance  which  it  never  had 
previously  among  us.  Never  have  I  known  one  who 
was  more  alive  to  the  progress  of  his  department,  and 
he  was  always  among  the  first  to  proclaim  the  discovery 
of  any  new  fact,  and  to  embrace  it  in  his  teachings. 


266        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

With  a  genius  well  fitted  for  original  investigations, 
the  slightest  hint  was  at  once  followed  by  a  thorough 
apprehension,  and  while  the  public  were  awaiting 
in  painful  anxiety  the  full  development,  Dr.  Ellet 
was  teaching  it  to  his  class.  It  is  probable  that 
he  made  the  first  gun  cotton  that  was  made  in  the 
United  States ;  certain  it  is  that  the  first  gun  fired  at 
the  South  was  fired  by  himself  in  the  Campus,  with 
cotton  manufactured  in  his  laboratory.  He  gave  a 
method  for  its  manufacture,  for  which  the  General 
Assembly  of  the  State  complimented  him  with  reso- 
lutions, and  a  service  of  silver.  He  first  exhibited  the 
electric  telegraph  to  the  people  of  the  State.  The 
instrument  was  made  under  his  directions  in  the  town 
of  Columbia,  and  he  stretched  his  wires  across  the 
Campus,  from  his  laboratory  to  the  Library.  I  shall 
never  forget  the  hundreds  who  visited  it  day  by  day, 
and  the  admiration  with  which  they  looked  upon  its 
mysterious  workings.  When  the  first  intelligence  was 
brought  of  the  brilliant  discovery  of  Daguerre,  Dr. 
Ellet  set  to  work  at  once,  and  was  taking  photograph 
likenesses  before  the  next  vessel  crossed  the  Atlantic. 
I  think  I  was  his  first  subject — I  might  say,  victim. 
He  had  informed  me  that  he  was  getting  up  an 
apparatus,  and  I  was  under  contract  to  sit  for  my  like- 
ness. When  all  things  were  ready,  he  called,  and  took 
me  to  the  scene  of  his  operations,  which  was  in  the 
rear  of  his  laboratory.  The  spot  selected  was  one  of 
the  sunniest  in  the  "  sunny  South,"  and  the  day  was 
one  of  the  hottest  in  a  Southern  Spring.  The  reader 
will  bear  in  mind  that  the  art  was  now  in  its  infancy, 
and  that  the  effort  of  the  Professor  was  strictly  experi- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        267 

mental.  The  light  was  to  sketch  the  picture,  and  it  was 
conceived  that  every  thing  depended  upon  having 
enough  of  its  august  presence.  To  make  sure  of  this, 
a  frame  of  ten  feet  square  was  constructed,  and  upon 
this  was  spread  a  sheet  of  snow-white  canvass.  I  was 
required  to  sit  with  my  head  uncovered  in  the  hottest 
sun  at  noon-day,  and  this  frame  of  canvass  was  placed 
immediately  behind  me.  My  situation  was  almost  as 
painful  as  that  of  Kegulus,  when  the  Carthagenians 
cut  off  his  eye-lids,  and  brought  him  suddenly  into  the 
sun,  that  it  might  dart  its  strongest  heat  upon  him. 
How  long  I  occupied  the  chair  I  cannot  tell,  but  I 
know  that  repeated  attempts  to  catch  my  likeness 
were  made,  and  that  my  poor  brain  felt  as  if  it  would 
burst  from  congestion.  At  last  it  was  announced  to 
my  infinite  joy,  that  he  had  a  portrait.  I  left  my 
seat  with  the  feelings  of  a  martyr.  There  was  a  por- 
trait ;  but  what  a  portrait !  The  eyes  were  closed, 
the  forehead  corrugated,  and  the  expression  hideous. 
Yet  it  was  a  portrait,  and  the  great  fact  proved  that 
the  light  could  paint  it !  I  preserved  it  for  many  years, 
and  though  I  would  not  have  it  to  grace  the  present 
volume,  I  would  be  glad,  on  account  of  its  historic 
interest,  if  it  had  a  present  existence. 

I  have  already  intimated  that  Dr.  Ellet's  entire 
knowledge  was  not  displayed  sin  his  laboratory.  He 
was  a  good  Latin  scholar  and  mathematician,  and  had 
a  familiar  acquaintance  with  several  of  the  modern 
languages  of  Europe.  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  suppose 
that  he  was  a  chemist  only.  His  reading  was  general, 
and  in  polite  literature  there  were  few  among  us  who 
could  boast  superior  attainments.  In  truth,  there 


268        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

were  few  men  as  well  informed,  and  on  no  subject  was 
he  entirely  ignorant.  Upon  the  whole,  he  impressed 
all  who  came  in  contact  with  him.  He  was  a  man  of 
genius  and  learning,  and  deserves  a  place  among 
the  most  distinguished  Professors  of  the  College.  He 
was  a  Professor  for  thirteen  years,  and  through  that 
long  period,  Professors,  Students  and  Trustees,  testify 
to  his  great  ability.  His  letter  of  resignation  is  dated 
May  3d,  1848.  In  it  he  asks  that  his  resignation  may 
take  effect  at  such  time  as  may  be  most  convenient 
for  the  appointment  of  a  successor.  He  takes  occa- 
sion also  to  express  the  deep  sense  of  the  kindness  and 
courtesy  which  have  been  uniformly  extended  to  him 
by  the  Board  of  Trustees.  His  resignation  was 
accepted,  to  take  effect  on  the  4th  Monday  in  Novem- 
ber ensuing.  December  2,  1848,  his  successor,  Pro- 
fessor Brumby,  was  elected,  and  in  a  few  days  Professor 
Ellet  retired  from  the  College  He  returned  to  his 
native  city,  New  York,  and  from  that  time  to  the 
period  of  his  death,  filled  no  public  position.  He 
received  repeated  solicitations,  but  declined  them.  He 
devoted  himself  to  the  prosecution  of  practical 
chemistry,  and  to  investigations  connected  with  the 
chemical  arts.  For  some  years  before  his  death,  with 
other  occupations  he  held  the  office  of  chemist  to  the 
Manhattan  Gas  Company,  and  for  the  prosecution 
of  his  labors,  was  provided  with  an  admirable 
laboratory.  He  died  on  the  morning  of  the  27th 
January,  1859,  of  an  affection  of  the  heart;  and 
known  as  he  was  throughout  the  limits  of  our 
State,  I  am  sure  that  the  announcement  will  call  to 
mind  his  eminent  services  in  the  South  Carolina  Col- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        269 

lege,  and  produce  one  profound  emotion  of  sorrow  and 
regret. 

I  cannot  close  this  sketch  without  making  a  brief 
allusion  to  a  letter  which  I  received  from  Dr.  Lieber, 
after  I  had  completed  it.  It  is  as  honorable  to  the 
writer  as  to  Dr.  Ellet,  whose  death  he  announces  in 
terms  not  only  of  respect,  but  affection.  He  attended 
his  funeral,  which  took  place  at  the  house  of  his  friend 
Professor  Oilman.  He  assures  me  that  all  the  men 
of  science  in  New  York  accord  to  him  the  highest 
genius  for  scientific  pursuits.  "He  died  professing 
his  faith  in  Christ.  So  we  go ;  it  is  but  the  difference 
of  a  span  of  time." 

The  year  1849  is  remarkable  for  presenting  on  its 
Catalogue  the  largest  number  of  students  ever  as- 
sembled within  the  walls.  Mr.  Preston  had  suffered 
from  a  protracted  indisposition,  and  the  duties  of  the 
President  had  for  the  time  been  devolved  by  the  Faculty 
upon  Dr.  Lieber.  He  .made  the  report  therefore  to 
the  Board  at  its  meeting,  May  9.  The  College  is 
declared  to  be  in  a  sound  and  flourishing  state,  and 
the  feeling  of  the  students  towards  the  Professors  all 
that  could  be  desired.  No  serious  disturbance  had 
taken  place,  though  the  Faculty  had  been  compelled 
to  suspend  three  students.  Mr.  Preston^s  health  was 
sufficiently  restored  to  allow  him  to  resume  his  duties  in 
October.  November  28,  he  submitted  his  report  to 
the  Board  of  Trustees,  with  the  reports  of  the  Pro- 
fessors. He  remarks  that  it  had  been  his  intention, 
until  within  a  week  or  two,  to  assure  the  Board  that 
the  College  was  in  every  respect  in  a  more  prosperous 
condition  than  he  had  ever  knpwn  it;  but  that  lately 
17 


270        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

an  unexpected  and  unaccountable  disposition  had  been 
manifested  by  the  students  to  indulge  in  disorderly 
noises,  by  whooping  in  the  Campus  at  night;  a  practice 
which  he  flattered  himself  had  been  finally  suppressed. 
This  is  the  only  matter  of  complaint,  and  he  only 
notices  it  because  it  has  marred  the  consistency  of  so 
long  a  course  of  correct  demeanor.  He  commends  in 
strong  language  the  order  and  discipline  of  the  College. 
The  report  of  the  Reverend  Dr.  Oilman,  Chairman  of 
the  Board  of  Visitors,  is  worthy  of  notice,  as  it  is  very 
elaborate,  and  full  of  the  most  important  suggestions. 
Upon  considering  the  character  of  the  author,  his  high 
scholarship  and  learning,  his  well-known  interest  in 
the  cause  of  education,  and  the  additional  fact  that  a 
portion  of  his  life  was  devoted  to  the  business  of 
instruction  in  the  highest  literary  institution  of  the 
country,  it  appears  but  proper  that  some  of  these  sug- 
gestions be  laid  before  the  public,  that  they  may 
receive  the  general  attention  to  which  they  are 
entitled.  He  found  the  amount  of  scholarship  different 
in  the  different  departments,  and  very  unequal  in  the 
individuals  composing  the  class.  He  insists  that  after 
making  every  fair  allowance  for  timidity,  absence  of 
mind,  inferiority  of  power,  or  accidental  frailty  of 
memory  on  the  part  of  the  students,  the  difference 
still  indicates  a  large  vacuum  in  scholarship  which 
ought  to  be  filled;  and  the  inquiry,  how  can  the  edu- 
cational machinery  of  the  College  be  so  modified  and 
improved  as  essentially  to  effect  the  purpose,  presses 
itself  upon  the  attention.  It  is  suggested  that  the 
early  age  at  which  students  are  allowed  to  enter  the 
College,  is  one  of  the  causes  of  the  comparatively  low 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        271 

range  of  attainment  in  many.  Another  cause  is  the 
paucity  of  teachers,  or  of  hours  of  instruction.  It  is 
the  unavoidable  result  of  such  a  state  of  things,  that 
weeks  must  elapse  in  which  students  are  not  called 
upon  to  recite.  This  fact  must  tend  very  much  to 
discourage,  if  not  to  demoralize  those  students  who 
are  affected  by  it,  and  to  depress  the  standard  ot 
sholarship.  The  report  states  with  truth,  that  the 
great  desideratum  in  the  apparatus  of  instruction, 
seems  to  be  some  method  of  pressing  the  indifferent, 
the  apathetic,  and  the  mediocres,  to  the  top  of  their 
powers.  The  Board  of  Visitors  recommend  the 
appointment  of  three  Tutors,  or  Assistant  Professors ; 
one  for  the  Greek,  one  for  the  Latin,  and  one  for  the 
Mathematics.  A  third  defect  is  to  be  found  in  the 
comparatively  small  number  of  honors  and  appoint- 
ments assigned  to  the  Annual  Commencement.  This 
is  regarded  by  the  Board  as  a  matter  of  great  impor- 
tance, and  is  argued  at  length.  The  principal  objection 
urged  in  the  report  to  the  present  state  of  things  is, 
that  very  many  students,  despairing  of  a  station  among 
the  foremost  number,  become  discouraged,  and  relapse 
to  a  point  of  exertion  just  sufficient  to  carry  them 
through  their  course  without  censure,  and  that  it  is  a 
sort  of  misfortune  to  belong  to  a  large  class  since  the 
same  amount  of  mind  and  scholarship  which  would 
be  rewarded  in  a  smaller,  becomes  swamped  in  a 
larger.  It  is  argued  that  if  College  honors  are  held 
out  at  all  for  a  stimulus  and  encouragement,  why 
should  not  the  principle  be  acted  upon  to  the  utmost 
practicable  degree  ?  Why  should  not  a  number  be 
assigned  sufficient  to  reward  all  the  respectable  and 


272        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

industrious  talent  in  the  Class?  The  report  adds, 
that  there  can  be  no  question  that  if  one  half  of  every 
class  were  regarded  as  certain  candidates  for  these 
distinctions,  the  difference  would  be  immediately  per- 
ceptible in  the  Senior  Examination.  It  considers  the 
objection  of  the  loss  of  time  and  tediousness  to  which 
the  audience  at  Commencement  would  be  exposed,  and 
disposes  of  it  by  the  remark,  that  such  an  objection  is 
not  to  be  weighed  against  the  prodigious  momentum 
for  good  arising  from  the  distribution  of  honors,  and 
which  so  peculiarly  addresses  the  feelings  of  our  young 
men  at  the  South.  The  report  supports  its  recom- 
mendation by  reference  to  the  Northern  Colleges. 
These  have  tried  the  effects  of  a  small  number  of 
appointments,  and,  after  experience,  have  found  it  ex- 
pedient, and  even  necessary,  to  resort  to  a  policy  of  a 
more  generous  distribution  of  honors. 

The  Board  also  recommends  the  introduction  into 
the  College  of  instruction  in  the  modern  languages, 
upon  the  ground,  that  so  great  is  the  intellectual 
wealth  laid  up  in  these  languages,  so  important 
through  life  are  the  advantages  arising  from  a  thor- 
ough acquaintance  with  them,  and  so  general  has 
become  their  study  in  Academical  Institutions,  that  it 
would  seem  the  South  Carolina  College  ought  not  to 
be  behind  the  age  in  departments  so  commanding, 
but  contribute  its  share  among  many  other  benefits,  in 
effacing  the  dishonor  attached  to  American  diplomacy, 
which  can  so  seldom  employ  any  other  but  its  own 
vernacular  in  foreign  courts.  The  Board,  in  conclu- 
sion, bears  testimony  to  the  pleasing  and  gentlemanly 
deportment  of  the  class  under  examination;  to  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        273 

patience  exhibited  throughout;  the  manly  interest 
they  seemed  to  feel  in  the  protracted  exercises,  and 
the  happy  moral  influences  at  work  within  the  Cam- 
pus. The  Commons  Hall,  too,  received  its  praise. 
The  deportment  of  the  students  was  unexceptionable, 
and  everything  in  the  Commons  indicated  neatness, 
regularity,  and  even  comfort.  Still  the  Board  is  not 
without  complaints  on  the  part  of  some  against  the 
system;  and  the  suggestion  is  made,  that  students  be 
allowed  to  board  at  certain  licensed  houses  in  Colum- 
bia. The  number  of  students  for  the  year,  including 
five  resident  graduates,  was  237.  Upon  the  whole,  I 
conclude  that  the  year  1849  is  entitled  to  a  most 
exalted  position  in  the  history  of  the  College.  Take 
it  altogether,  I  know  not  what  year  can  lay  claim  to 
greater  brilliancy  and  success.  Never  did  the  College 
have  as  large  numbers ;  never  did  it  have  greater 
internal  quiet,  and  never  did  it  enjoy  a  larger  measure 
of  the  public  confidence.  I  remember  well  the  pride 
with  which  the  people  looked  to  it.  Many  now 
thought  that  its  days  of  trial  and  trouble  were  gone 
forever;  that  the  future,  year  by  year,  would  only 
reveal  an  increasing  brightness  and  glory.  But  the 
hope  was  fallacious.  The  most  desolating  storms  have 
since  passed  over  it,  and  its  friends  have  been  made 
to  tremble  for  its  very  existence.  But  while  none 
should  indulge  in  the  vain  hope  of  perfectibility,  let 
none  give  way  to  despondency.  After  all,  the  College 
is  accomplishing  the  great  end  of  its  creation.  Periodi- 
cal disorders  will  ever  take  place.  The  cause  is  to 
be  found  in  the  nature  of  youth,  and  the  only  problem 
really  presented  is,  how  can  these  disorders  be  dimin- 


274        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

ished — not  how  can  they  be  exterminated ;  how  can 
they  be  best  held  in  check — not  how  can  they  be  best 
prevented  altogether?  They  have  always  existed  in 
Colleges  in  some  form  or  other;  and  as  long  as 
human  nature  is  as  it  is,  they  ever  will.  Years,  such 
as  I  am  now  considering,  are  bright  spots  in  the 
history  of  youth.  They  are  years  when  levity  and 
thoughtlessness,  rashness  and  inconsiderateness,  are 
exchanged  for  the  sober  reflection  of  mature  life. 
Every  age  has  its  peculiarities,  and  the  excitability  of 
youth  is  prone  to  overleap  its  proper  boundaries;  to 
rush  impetuously  upon 

"  Pleasure's  path,  or  passion's  mad  career." 

Let  this  truth  always  enter  into  our  calculations  in 
respect  to  the  conduct  of  young  men,  and  let  us  not 
be  disappointed  by  their  impulsiveness,  their  reckless- 
ness, and  their  folly.  No  system  of  discipline  can 
give  the  ripe  reflection  which  belongs  to  a  later  period. 
Disorders  may  suddenly  come  forth  with  tremendous 
violence ;  and  that  Instructor  in  a  College  is  truly  wise, 
who  holds  himself  in  constant  readiness  to  meet  them. 
It  is  possible  to  beget  a  public  sentiment  in  the  young 
men  themselves,  which  in  the  main  will,  for  a  time 
at  least,  afford  comparative  protection.  And  though 
the  law  must  be  enforced,  when  it  suffers  violation, 
yet  I  do  insist,  that  without  this  stronger  power,  I 
mean  the  moral  sentiment  of  the  College  itself,  all 
other  influences  will  be  vain  and  useless.  The  truth 
is,  that  rarely  has  there  been  in  the  College  as  elevated 
a  tone  as  existed  at  the  period  when  there  were  two 
hundred  and  thirty-seven  students  in  its  walls.  In 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        275 

this  was  found  the  great  security.  It  is  worthy  of 
mention,  that  the  Board  consolidated  the  offices  of 
Librarian,  Treasurer  and  Secretary  of  the  Faculty, 
and  amended  the  by-laws  accordingly.  The  present 
Librarian  and  Treasurer  were  permitted  to  retain  their 
respective  offices  until  the  next  meeting  of  the  Board 
in  December,  1850,  at  which  time  an  election  would 
take  place,  and  the  new  regulations  go  into  effect. 

But  I  am  now  to  trace  the  history  of  the  year  1850. 
At  the  meeting  of  the  Board,  May  8,  the  President 
made  his  report.  Up  to  the  9th  of  April,  the  College 
was  in  a  most  prosperous  condition.  There  had  been 
no  disorder  worthy  of  notice.  So  perfect  had  been 
the  order,  that  congratulatipns  had  been  exchanged 
among  the  officers,  and  frequent  compliments  expressed 
by  the  people  of  the  Town.  About  the  9th  of  April, 
the  face  of  things  was  suddenly  and  violently  changed 
by  an  unexpected  insurrection  of  the  whole  Junior 
Class.  This  rebellion  was  about  a  mere  trifle,  and  the 
history  of  it,  as  given  by  the  President  in  a  circular 
addressed  to  the  members  of  the  Board,  leaves  the 
class  without  any  excuse.  A  Professor  leaves  the 
College,  and  his  vacant  hours  with  the  Junior  Class 
are  assigned  to  another  Professor.  Surely  there  was 
no  pretext  for  rebellion  under  such  circumstances; 
the  right  to  assign  the  hours  cannot  in  reason  be 
questioned,  and  the  duty  of  obedience,  therefore,  wa 
manifest.  But  the  class  acted  upon  its  interpretation 
of  the  law.  I  must  here  say  what,  perhaps,  I  have 
in  substance  said  before,  that  the  students  have 
nothing  to  do  with  its  interpretation.  The  fact 
cannot  be  too  often  repeated.  It  is  this  false  notion 


276        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

which  produces  nearly  all  the  rebellions.  The  Faculty 
alone  are  to  interpret  the  laws,  and  the  simple  duty 
of  the  student  is  obedience.  It  would  be  monstrous 
if  it  were  otherwise.  Grant  to  them  that  right,  and 
the  College  could  not  possibly  be  administered.  Issues 
would  be  of  daily  occurrence,  and  there  would  be  one 
perpetual  conflict  of  opinion.  Nor  is  there  any  cause 
of  complaint.  They  are  the  subjects,  the  governed, 
and  it  is  in  precise  analogy  with  the  administration  of 
justice  everywhere  else.  They  have  their  appeal  to 
a  higher  tribunal,  and  are  therefore  protected  against 
any  despotic  exercise  of  power.  Let  the  student 
learn  that  the  Trustees  enact  the  laws,  and  that 
to  the  Faculty  alone  is  committed  the  high  trust  of 
interpreting  them,  and  putting  them  in  operation. 
The  Commons,  too,  again  became  a  source  of  trouble 
and  vexation.  For  some  time  its  affairs  had  been  so 
well  administered  by  the  gentleman  in  charge,  that 
the  students  had  ceased  all  complaint.  I  think  that 
I  can  assert,  from  a  thorough  knowledge  of  all  its 
details,  that  the  table  was  good ;  that  all  the  arrange- 
ments were  as  perfect  as  the  nature  of  the  case  would 
allow,  and  that  nine-tenths  of  the  young  men  fared 
better  than  they  did  at  home.  What,  then,  was  the 
cause  of  the  growing  dissatisfaction  ?  How  is  it  that 
from  the  very  foundation  of  the  Commons,  the  never- 
ceasing  murmur  of  discontent  now  and  then  bursts 
forth  into  violence  ?  The  Bursar  was  a  gentleman  of 
character  and  position,  and  endeared  to  the  whole 
people  of  Carolina,  and  to  the  youth  especially,  by 
the  recollection  of  the  brilliant  services  which  he  had 
rendered  in  the  war  with  Mexico.  I  cannot  better 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        277 

explain  the  matter,  than  by  adopting  the  language 
of  Professor  Thornwell,  which  is  to  be  found  in 
his  report  at  that  period.  "  The  dissatisfaction  of 
the  students,  as  it  appears  to  me,  arises  from  the 
unpleasant  association  connected  with  the  place,  as  a 
place  of  compulsory  boarding.  The  disgust  extends 
to  everything  about  the  establishment,  and  by  a  natural 
illusion  they  transfer  to  their  food  the  prejudices 
against  the  system  which  provides  it."  It  will  be  seen 
that  the  College  was  in  trouble;  that  there  was  a 
rebellion  of  the  Junior  .Class  against  the  authority  of 
a  Professor,  and  finally  of  the  Faculty,  and  great 
discontent  with  the  Commons.  The  first  difficulty 
terminated  in  the  suspension  of  sixty  students,  and 
the  consequent  breaking  up,  for  the  time,  of  the  Junior 
Class.  May  10,  Mr.  Preston,  in  consequence  of 
increasing  ill-health,  tendered  his  resignation,  but  no 
action  was  taken  upon  it  by  the  Board.  At  the  meet- 
ing of  the  Board,  November  27,  his  health  was 
improved,  and  his  resignation  withdrawn.  He  reports 
the  College  as  having  recovered  its  wonted  steadiness 
after  the  severe  trial  to  which  it  had  been  subjected 
in  the  Spring,  and  as  going  on  prosperously.  In  con- 
clusion, the  year  1850  cannot  be  regarded  as  a  bright 
one  in  the  history  of  the  College.  I  am  wholly  unable 
to  account  for  its  disorders.  I  can  find  no  internal 
cause.  The  Faculty  never  discharged  their  duty  with 
more  promptitude  and  fidelity,  and  the  comfort  of 
the  students  was  more  consulted  in  the  Commons  than 
at  any  former  period.  But  I  pass  on  to  the  year  1851, 
and  I  am  sorry  to  report  the  occurrence  of  disaster 
and  disorder.  In  March  a  fire  occurred,  which  de- 


278        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

stroyed  one  College,  and  seriously  threatened  the 
adjoining  centre-builing  and  wing,  and  certain  houses 
occupied  by  officers  of  the  College.  This  was  certainly 
calamity  enough  for  one  session;  but  the  President 
reports  the  exhibition  of  ill-feeling  and  insubordination 
among  the  students.  This  began  in  the  removal  of 
the  bell,  and  was  followed  by  the  series  of  petty 
annoyances  and  disturbances  to  which  such  an  incident 
would  naturally  give  rise.  The  young  men,  as  usual, 
stood  upon  their  rights,  and  turned  lawyers.  Here 
came  the  nicest  refinement,  the  subtlest  metaphysics 
of  construction.  Are  the  students  compelled  to  attend 
upon  any  other  summons  than  that  of  a  bell?  And 
are  they  bound  to  regard  any  other  bell  than  the  bell 
regularly  provided  for  the  purpose  ?  Or,  are  the  Faculty 
authorized  to  call  them  to  recitation  by  the  sound 
of  the  drum,  the  blast  of  the  bugle,  or  by  any  other 
signal?  Or,  must  the  students  perform  their  services 
at  the  appointed  hour  in  the  absence  of  the  bell  or  any 
other  summons?  These  were  the  grave  questions 
presented  for  deliberation.  It  was,  I  believe,  a  new 
case,  and  there  was  no  light  of  precedent  to  guide 
through  the  pitchy  darkness.  The  Faculty,  however, 
came  to  decided  conclusions.  The  accustomed  mode 
of  summons  was  now  impossible,  from  the  act  of  the 
students.  If  the  tones  of  the  old  bell  alone  had 
power  to  command,  then  the  exercises  were  suspended 
indefinitely.  This  ground,  then,  was  summarily  dis- 
posed of.  It  was  decided  that  a  bell  was  a  bell,  and 
that  for  the  purposes  of  a  College,  one  was  as  poten- 
tial as  another.  An  auction  bell  was  substituted,  and  a 
servant  was  instructed  to  go  before  the  Colleges  at  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        279 

appointed  hours,  and  ring  it.  But  here  was  another 
delicate  question.  The  bell-ringer  is  a  kind  of  officer 
in  the  College,  recognized  in  the  law,  with  his  duties 
prescribed,  receiving  a  certain  compensation  in  board 
and  instruction,  and  he  must  be  a  white  man.  But 
this  point,  though  made,  was  suddenly  disposed  of  by 
the  students  taking  the  bell  from  him,  and  thus 
deposing  him  from  his  station.  The  Faculty  then 
determined  that  the  students  should  attend  the  exer- 
cises at  the  legal  hours,  whether  a  bell  was  rung  or 
not.  The  gallant  Sophomores  put  the  authority  at 
defiance,  and  resolved  that  they  would  not  attend 
prayers  or  recitations  the  next  morning  without  the 
summons  of  the  bell.  The  flag  of  rebellion  was  now 
fully  unfurled,  and  many  of  the  members  of  the 
Junior  and  Freshman  Classes  rallied  around  it.  The 
Seniors,  however,  stood  firm,  and  gave  no  countenance 
to  the  movement.  Things  were  bad  enough,  but  they 
were  soon  to  get  better.  The  storm  was  at  its  greatest- 
fury,  but  its  raging  was  soon  to  cease.  Luckily  some 
of  the  Trustees  were  within  the  walls,  and  it  was  sug- 
gested that  a  temporary  bell  be  hung  in  the  usual  .place, 
(the  cupola,)  and  rung  at  the  usual  hour  next  morn- 
ing. The  effect  was  magical;  the  students  gave  a 
prompt  obedience,  and  the  spirit  of  letters  again 
breathed  upon  all  its  gentle  influences. 

Some  of  my  readers  may  think  that  the  troubles  to 
which  I  have  called  attention  were  entitled  to  no  more 
than  a  bare  allusion.  This  may  be  so,  but  I  have 
thought  that  the  matter  may  be  turned  to  profitable 
account.  It  illustrates  the  facility  with  which  a  re- 
bellion may  be  gotten  up  in  College,  and  the  many 


280        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

difficulties  in  the  way  of  government;  the  special 
pleading  to  which  students  are  so  much  addicted,  and 
the  uncalled  for  jealousy  with  which  they  watch  over 
their  imaginary  rights;  and  finally,  the  weakness  of 
any  system  of  laws  which  by  possibility  allows  the 
student  to  contest  their  meaning,  their  wisdom,  or  ex- 
pediency, and  thus  to  raise  issues  between  himself  and 
the  authorities  of  the  College.  After  all,  though 
disorders,  in  whatever  form  they  appear,  must  be 
condemned,  and  particularly  those  which  result  from 
combination,  still  the  College  in  this  instance  sustained 
no  very  serious  injury,  and  the  effects  soon  passed 
away.  Professor  Thornwell  having  received  a  call  to 
become  the  Pastor  of  Glebe  Street  Church,  Charleston, 
asked  leave  to  resign  his  Professorship,  and  leave  was 
granted  him  to  terminate  his  connection  on  the  15th 
instant.  At  the  meeting  of  November  26,  Mr.  Preston 
made  his  Annual  Keport.  He  remarks  that  from  the 
period  of  the  adjournment  of  the  Board  in  the  Spring 
until  the  termination  of  the  session,  the  condition  of 
the  College  was  uninterruptedly  prosperous,  and  that 
the  session  was  closed  by  an  examination  of  the 
Sophomore  Class,  the  most  creditable  and  honorable 
to  it.  But  he  adds,  that  the  class  thought  proper  to 
signalize  the  triumphant  exhibition  by  a  boisterous 
riot.  The  case,  however,  was  but  a  case  of  noisy  frolic 
at  night,  continued  for  a  time  in  the  Campus,  and 
though  of  course  to  be  sternly  condemned,  yet  inflict- 
ing no  very  serious  injury.  The  communication, 
however,  derives  its  principal  interest  from  the  fact, 
that  in  it  Mr.  Preston  tenders  his  resignation  of  the 
Presidency  of  the  College,  and  that  in  a  few  days  his 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        281 

connection  was  to  cease.  It  is  worthy  of  mention  that 
the  Reverend  Dr.  Howe  submitted  the  report  of  the 
Board  of  Visitors  on  the  final  examination  of  the  Senior 
Class.  He  attended  alone,  but  his  great  learning  and 
rare  scholarship  claim  for  his  conclusions  the  highest 
importance.  He  approves  cordially  of  the  mode  of 
written  examinations,  and  commends  the  method  of 
instruction  as  far  as  results  prove  any  thing.  He 
concludes  in  the  following  language : — "  What  I  have 
seen  and  heard  during  the  examination,  has  given  me 
a  higher  appreciation  of  the  College  as  a  place  of  edu- 
cation than  I  had  before  entertained,  though  always 
holding  it  in  a  very  high  esteem."  Mr.  Preston  hav- 
ing dissolved  his  connection  with  the  College,  the 
Faculty  appointed  Professor  Lieber  their  Chairman, 
and  the  Trustees  requested  him  to  preside  at  the 
Commencement  Exercises.  December  2,  Reverend 
James  H.  Thornwell  was  elected  President  of  the 
College,  and  Reverend  J.  L.  Reynolds  was  elected 
Professor  of  Belles  Letters  and  Elocution.  The 
history  of  the  year  which  I  have  thus  presented  must 
be  regarded  as  eventful.  The  resignation  of  Professor 
Thornwell,  the  resignation  of  President  Preston,  the 
recall  of  Dr.  Thornwell  and  his  election  to  the  Presi- 
dency, the  election  of  Dr.  Reynolds,  these  are  events 
of  great  interest,  and  must  always  stand  out 
prominently.  The  administration  of  Mr.  Preston  is 
now  terminated,  and  in  accordance  with  my  plan,  I 
undertake  to  present  him  more  distinctly  to  my  reader. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

William  Campbell  Preston  was  born  in  Philadelphia, 
December  27,  1794.  Congress  was  then  in  session,  of 
which  his  father  was  a  member,  and  thus  he  happened 
to  be  born  in  that  city.  His  paternal  grandfather 
was  Lieutenant-Commandant  of  Augusta  County 
during  the  Revolution,  and  then  and  afterwards  of  the 
Militia  of  Western  Virginia,  from  the  Blue  Ridge  to 
the  Ohio.  His  mother  was  the  only  child  of  Colonel 
Campbell,  of  Kings'  Mountain,  and  her  mother  was 
a  sister  of  Patrick  Henry.  His  earliest  teacher  was 
Peter  Byrnes,  an  Irishman,  who  came  into  his  grand 
father's  family  in  1780,  and  continued  to  teach  succes- 
sive generations  until  his  death,  at  a  very  advanced 
age.  From  Byrnes,  however,  he  derived  no  other 
advantage  than  the  learning  of  the  alphabet,  and  the 
imperfect  reading  of  the  Testament.  At  the  period  of 
Byrnes'  death,  Mr.  Preston  was  twelve  years  old,  and 
he  was  then  placed  under  the  instruction  of  a  Mr. 
Hercules  Whaley.  By  this  gentleman  he  was  intro- 
duced to  the  study  of  Latin,  and  as  he  was  a  very 
accomplished  scholar,  and  had  great  familiarity,  not 
only  with  the  Latin,  but  with  the  English  and  French 
Literature,  he  created  in  him  a  taste  for  these 
languages.  He  was  accomplished  in  the  art  of  read- 
ing, and  delighted  and  fascinated  his  pupil  by  the 
exhibitions  of  his  great  power  in  that  respect.  In  his 


284        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

fourteenth  year  he  was  sent  to  Washington  College, 
Lexington,  Virginia,  where  he  learned  but  little. 
From  very  early  life  he  had  been  subject  to  a  slight 
hemorrhage  from  his  lungs.  As  it  seemed  to  be 
increasing,  it  was  thought  advisable  to  send  him  for  a 
winter  to  the  South,  and  he  left  accordingly  for 
Florida  on  horse-back,  under  the  care  of  a  trusty 
family-servant,  with  instructions  to  proceed  through 
Columbia,  where  he  was  to  obtain  letters  and  instruc- 
tions for  the  further  prosecution  of  his  journey.  At 
Columbia  he  made  the  acquaintance  of  certain  young 
men  who  had  come  with  the  view  of  seeking  admission 
into  the  South  Carolina  College,  of  the  existence  of  which 
he  was  now  informed  for  the  first  time.  They  gave  him 
a  glowing  account  of  the  prospects  of  the  College,  of 
the  pleasure  which  they  were  to  enjoy  in  it,  and  urged 
him  to  make  application,  with  the  assurance  that  he 
would  be  successful.  He  doubted  his  preparation,  but 
his  friends  were  importunate,  and  he  resolved  to  re- 
linquish the  trip  to  Florida,  and  make  the  experiment. 
This  determination,  however,  was  not  taken  until  he 
had  consulted  his  servant  Isaac,  and  procured  his 
approbation.  He  repaired  to  the  College,  and  the 
Faculty  books  contain  the  following  record : — Decem- 
ber 25,  1809,  William  C.  Preston,  of  Washington 
County,  Virginia,  was  examined  and  admitted  into 
the  Sophomore  Class,  pusuant  to  the  1st  chap.  15th 
section  of  the  College  laws.  Some  of  the  incidents  of 
his  examination  are,  perhaps,  not  unworthy  of 
mention.  I  have  already  said  that  he  doubted  his 
preparation ;  it  was  in  the  Classics  that  he  apprehended 
his  chief  deficiency.  Dr.  Park  was  the  Professor,  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        285 

gave  him  the  passage  in  ^En.  Lib.  11,  v.  268  of  Virgil, 
beginning 

"  Tempus  erat,  quo  prima  quies  mortalibus  aegris 
Incipit,  et  dono  divftm  gratissima  serpit." 

The  Latin  was  read  to  the  Professor,  and  he  was 
asked  by  the  candidate  if  he  would  accept  the  transla- 
tion of  Dry  den.  To  this  he  assented,  and  after  fifteen 
or  twenty  lines  were -repeated,  the  Professor  remarked : 
"  That  will  do  for  Latin."  He  graduated  with  distinc- 
tion in  the  Class  of  1812.  The  subject  of  his  Com- 
mencement speech  was  "  The  Life  and  Character  of 
Jefferson."  It  was  a  time  of  much  political  excite- 
ment between  the  Federalists  and  the  Republicans, 
and  as  his  elocution  was  far  above  the  common 
standard,  the  speech  was  well  received,  and,  as  was 
thought,  shadowed  forth  his  future  reputation.  From 
College  he  went  to  Richmond,  where  the  Legislature 
was  then  sitting,  and  thence  to  "Washington  City  to 
spend  the  residue  of  the  winter.  In  the  Spring  he 
entered  the  office  of  the  celebrated  William  Wirt  at 
Richmond,  as  a  student  of  law,  but  on  the  approach 
of  Summer,  he  was  sent  by  his  father  on  a  long  horse- 
back tour  to  the  remote  West,  preparatory  to  a  visit 
to  Europe,  which  was  a  portion  of  his  plan  of  educa- 
tion. He  travelled  through  Tennessee,  Kentucky,  Ohio, 
Indiana,  Illinois  and  Missouri,  accomplishing  in  about 
seven  months  four  thousand  miles  of  horseback  travel. 
The  curious  and  valuable  information  thus  obtained  was 
of  great  service  to  him  in  his  subsequent  tour  to  Eu- 
rope. The  best  informed  were  entirely  ignorant  of  the 
"  Far  West."  It  was  a  region  of  vast  natural  resources, 
18 


286        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

with  a  population  and  state  of  society  of  peculiar 
character,  presenting  at  that  period  a  state  of  perhaps 
not  more  than  half  civilization,  but  yet,  to  the  acute 
observer,  combining  within  itself  all  the  elements  of  an 
overshadowing  power  and  greatness.  In  Europe  he 
made  the  acquaintance  of  some  of  the  most  celebrated 
characters  of  the  day.  Among  these  may  be  mentioned 
Hamilton  Rowan,  Lady  Morgan,  and  Washington 
Irving,  with  the  latter  of  whom  was  laid  the  founda- 
tion of  a  most  agreeable  and  life-long  acquaintance. 
Irving  gave  him  a  note  of  introduction  to  Thomas 
Campbell,  the  poet,  then  in  London,  with  whom  he 
had  the  most  pleasant  intercourse.  Campbell  gave 
him  letters  to  Walter  Scott,  whose  acquaintance  he 
has  been  accustomed  to  regard  as  constituting  an  era 
in  his  life.  He  now  visited  France,  and  remained 
several  months  in  Paris.  After  journeying  through 
Switzerland  and  Italy,  he  returned  to  Edinburgh  the 
succeeding  winter,  to  take  a  course  of  instruction  in 
her  celebrated  University.  There  he  met  Hugh  S. 
Legare,  and  during  his  stay  they  roomed  together. 
He  attended  the  classes  of  Play  fair,  of  Brown,  and  of 
Irving,  on  Civil  Law.  He  returned  to  the  United 
States  in  the  Summer  of  1819,  and  was  admitted  to 
the  bar  in  Virginia  in  1820.  Determining  to  reside 
in  Columbia,  South  Carolina,  in  1822  he  took  up  his 
residence  in  that  place,  and  formed  a  partnership  with 
the  late  David  J.  McCord,  who  had  just  dissolved  his 
partnership  with  Henry  Junius  Nott.  As  this  office 
had  a  good  deal  of  business,  he  was  at  once  intro- 
duced to  practice,  so  that  he  was  exempt  from  the 
painful  tedium  generally  attending  those  who  wait 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        287 

for  the  coming  of  clients.  He  was  fortunate,  too,  in 
being  employed  at  this  period  in  a  case  of  contested 
election  before  the  Senate,  between  General  Geddes 
and  William  Crafts,  which  was  the  occasion  of  great 
excitement  in  the  Legislature  and  the  State.  In  this 
trial  he  bore  himself  with  spirit  and  ability,  and 
among  other  compliments,  it  may  be  mentioned  that 
he  so  excited  the  admiration  of  Colonel  James  Hamil- 
ton, that  he  sought  an  introduction  to  him  at  the  close 
of  his  speech,  which  soon  ripened  into  an  intimacy 
that,  amid  the  many  changes  of  fortune,  never  suffered 
the  slightest  diminution.  In  1828  he  was  elected  to 
the  State  Legislature,  and  again  returned  in  1830  and 
1832.  In  1836  he  was  transferred  to  the  Senate  of  the 
United  States,  in  place  of  Stephen  D.  Miller  resigned. 
When  in  the  Presidential  contest  the  State  concluded  to 
give  its  support  to  Yan  Bureri  and  his  party,  he  resigned 
his  seat,  and  returned  to  the  practice  of  the  bar.  He 
was  thus  employed  when,  November  28,  1845,  he  was 
elected  President  of  the  College. 

I  have  thus  given  very  hurriedly  some  of  the  leading 
events  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Preston.  It  is  now  my 
purpose  to  exhibit  more  particularly  his  intellectual 
character;  to  lay  open,  if  I  can,  the  sources  of 
his  power,  and  to  present  him  with  something  of 
distinctness  as  the  President  of  the  College.  I  am 
not  silly  enough  to  suppose  that  I  can  please  all ;  nor 
do  I  expect  that  I  shall  gain  the  approbation  of  all 
of  those  even  who  are  most  competent  to  form  a  judg- 
ment in  the  matter.  I  claim  only  the  humble  merit 
of  giving  my  own  honest  impressions,  and  I  submit 
that  I  have  not  been  without  opportunities  for  coming 


288        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

to  something  like  just  conclusions.  That  he  has  been  a 
man  of  extraordinary  power  on  all  the  occasions  of  life 
where  he  has  acted  a  part,  is  not  to  be  questioned. 
In  South  Carolina,  nothing  would  be  more  absurd 
than  to  deny  it.  It  will,  then,  be  taken  for  gran  ted , 
and  the  question  which  now  presses  upon  us  is,  how  is 
the  fact  to  be  accounted  for?  There  are  those  who  will 
answer  that  all  these  marvellous  effects  are  due  alone 
to  the  graces  of  elocution.,  and  the  charms  of  the  rhetorician. 
I  have  to  remark  that  there  is  a  wide-spread  prejudice 
against  the  finished  speaker;  that  with  not  a  few 
such  an  accomplishment  is  regarded  as  incompatible 
with  high  powers  of  reasoning  and  argument.  But,  is 
there  any  thing  in  great  thoughts  which  forbid  an  ac- 
complished utterance  ?  Do  they  eschew  all  connection 
with  the  refined,  the  beautiful  and  the  graceful  ?  Or  is 
it  that  such  connection  can  only  exist  in  written  lan- 
guage ;  that  taste  and  beauty,  and  the  most  refined 
elegance  of  expression,  may  be  allowed  to  the  great 
minds  of  Homer,  and  ^Eschylus,  and  Virgil,  and  Milton, 
and  Shakspeare,  but  not  to  the  speaker  or  orator ! 
Shall  it  be  presented  as  a  test  of  intellectual  power 
in  him  who  addresses  an  assembly,  that  the  voice  must 
be  untrained  and  uncultivated,  the  attitude  wanting 
in  grace,  and  the  gesticulation  stiff  and  awkward  ! 

After  all,  it  is  the  question  whether  art  can  accom- 
plish any  thing  in  the  matter.  I  dispose  of  the  sub- 
ject by  the  remark,  that  there  never  was  a  great 
speaker  who  had  not  brought  to  his  aid  the  help  of  art. 
There  is  no  little  double  dealing,  or  disingenuousness 
about  it.  We  read  of  the  severe  training  of  the 
mighty  Athenian,  of  the  studied  accomplishments  of 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        289 

the  immortal  Tully,  of  the  not  "  unbought  grace "  of 
Chatham,  of  the  toils  of  Fox,  and  of  the  theatrical  dis- 
plays of  Sheridan.  No  one  strove  harder  than  Burke 
to  supperadd  this  power,  but  the  truth  is  that  he  could 
not  acquire  it.  He  well  knew  its  value,  and  envied 
its  possession  by  others.  His  poor  attempts  in  that 
way  only  excited  laughter  and  ridicule.  Let  the 
reader  call  to  mind  "the  dagger  scene."  Who  can 
measure  the  effect  of  those  mighty  speeches  which  have 
come  down  to  us,  if  he  had  been  master  of  the  graces 
and  elegances  of  elocution?  As  it  was,  the  historian 
records  that  he  spoke  to  empty  benches.  Mr.  Preston 
is  justly  entitled  to  a  place  in  the  first  rank  of  speakers, 
rhetoricians,  declaimers  or  orators — call  it  by  what 
term  we  may — of  his  times.  I  care  not  which  may 
be  selected.  He  was  the  contemporary  of  McDuffie, 
Hamilton,  Hayne,  Legare,  Harper,  Turnbull,  and  others 
of  that  brilliant  galaxy  which,  at  the  most  eventful 
period  of  the  history  of  our  State,  shed  such  a  flood 
of  glory  upon  her.  Need  I  say  that  he  was  brought  into 
immediate  comparison  with  them;  that  they  labored 
together  on  our  most  momentous  occasions,  and  that 
the  united  voice  of  the  hearers  pronounced  him  the 
equal  of  any.  Truly  was  it  a  time  to  test  his  power, 
and  none  established  a  more  brilliant  and  enduring 
reputation.  He  alone  survives,  the  solitary  remnant 
of  that  glorious  band  of  orators,  and  statesmen  and 
patriots.  The  State  will  ever  cherish  their  memory, 
and  point  with  becoming  pride  to  that  day  of  unsur- 
passed renown. 

"  Who  for  the  palm  in  contest  high  shall  join ! 
Or  who  in  equal  ranks  shall  stand !" 


290        HISTORY  OF  TEE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

In  our  Nullification  struggle,  he  acted  a  most  distin- 
guished part,  and  few  contributed  as  much  to  shape 
the  policy  of  the  State.  Sagacious  in  counsel,  his 
opinions  always  received  the  highest  consideration 
from  the  great  men  with  whom  he  was  associated, 
and  none  commanded  a  greater  influence.  As  a 
popular  speaker  he  was  unequalled,  unless  it  be 
by  McDuffie.  Nor  was  it  the  ignorant  multitude 
alone  who  were  led  captive  at  his  will.  All  alike  felt 
the  magic  of  his  eloquence.  The  men  with  whom  he 
•had  to  act  were  not  to  be  misled  by  the  mere  tinsel 
of  the  rhetorician;  to  be  seduced  by  the  splendid,  yet 
gossamer-tissue  of  the  elocutionist.  He  had  to  deal 
with  mighty  minds,  who  could  alone  be  influenced  by 
appeals  to  their  reason  and  understanding.  In  what, 
then,  consisted  his  power?  I  cannot  answer  the  ques- 
tion better  than  by  applying  to  him  some  part  of  the 
description  which  Burke  gives  of  Charles  Townshend : 
"He  was  a  man  of  pointed  and  polished  wit;  and  if 
he  had  not  so  great  a  stock  as  others  of  knowledge 
long  treasured  up,  he  knew  better  by  far  than  any 
man  I  was  ever  acquainted  with,  how  to  bring  together 
all  that  was  necessary  to  establish,  to  illustrate,  and 
to  decorate  that  side  of  the  question  he  supported. 
He  stated  his  matter  skillfully  and  powerfully.  He 
particularly  excelled  in  luminous  explanation  and 
display  of  his  subject.  His  style  of  argument  was 
neither  trite  nor  vulgar,  nor  subtle  nor  abstruse.  He 
hit  his  audience  just  between  wind  and  water."  I 
think  his  power  of  adaptation  is  very  great,  and  with 
a  facility  rarely  possessed,  he  can  accommodate  him- 
self to  the  occasion.  His  perceptions  are  acute  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        291 

quick,  and  few  can  turn  to  equal  account  a  passing 
incident,  or  unexpected  circumstance.  He  has  won- 
derful command  of  language,  and  speaks  with  greatest 
facility.  Never  have  I  seen  his  superior  in  this 
respect.  His  words  come  without  effort,  and  the 
surprise  is,  that  such  words,  such  propriety  of  expres- 
sion, should  fall  from  his  lips  seemingly  uncalled  for 
and  unbidden.  In  our  State  Legislature  he  took  the 
highest  rank.  I  am  sure  that  when  he  was  a  member 
he  had  no  superior;  and  I  might  ask,  who  was  his 
rival,  who  surpassed  him  in  debate,  who  wielded  a 
mightier  power,  who  attracted  a  larger  measure  of 
admiration?  Nor  did  his  fame  suffer  obscuration 
by  his  transfer  to  that  more  illustrious  theatre,  the 
Senate  Chamber  of  the  Union.  There  he  attained 
high  rank,  and  established  an  enviable  reputation. 
As  a  lawyer,  I  do  not  claim  for  him  the  profoundest 
learning.  I  know  that  he  does  not  take  rank  among 
the  great  lawyers  of  Carolina.  To  reach  such  a 
position  one  must  consecrate  his  life  to  the  service; 
and  this  he  did  not  do.  There  are  examples  of  men 
who  united  the  characters  of  distinguished  jurists 
and  politicians,  but  they  are  rare.  Among  the  most 
illustrious  instances  of  our  day,  are  Webster  of  the 
North,  and  Berrien  of  the  South.  I  could  give 
numerous  examples  to  illustrate  the  general  incompati- 
bility of  the  two  pursuits.  I  take  it,  then,  that  Mr. 
Preston  is  not  a  great  lawyer,  because  he  has  directed 
a  large  portion  of  his  life  to  politics.  I  may  add,  that 
he  has  devoted  his  attention  to  two  of  the  three  objects 
which,  according  to  Sir  Edward  Coke,  are  alone 
worthy  of  ambition — law  and  politics.  To  the  third 


292        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

he  always  manifested  the  most  perfect  indifference; 
that  is,  the  laying  up  of  money.  It  is  but  an  act  of 
justice  to  say,  that  he  has  made  some  of  the  finest 
forensic  displays  which  have  ever  been  witnessed  in 
our  State.  Whenever  it  was  known  that  he  was 
to  speak  in  an  important  cause,  there  was  the  most 
eager  desire  to  hear  him,  and  never  was  the  public 
expectation  disappointed.  With  his  fine  powers  of 
elocution  all  were  fascinated;  but  the  lawyer  and  the 
man  of  reflection  could  perceive  the  subtle  distinc- 
tions, the  refined  discriminations,  the  nice  perception 
of  the  strong  points  of  the  question,  the  wonderful 
fertility  of  invention  and  illustration,  the  varied  and 
multiplied  resources  for  which  his  speeches  were 
remarkable,  and  which  always  secured  for  them  a 
permanent  impression.  From  what  I  have  said,  the 
reader  will  conclude  that  I  do  not  regard  Mr.  Preston 
as  defective  in  logical  or  argumentative  power;  but  I 
would  assign  the  predominance  to  the  perceptive 
faculties.  His  imagination  is  warm  and  fervid,  and 
delights  to  sport  in  beautiful  creations.  His  taste  is 
just  and  discriminating;  and  whether  in  the  works  of 
art,  or  the  varied  exhibitions  of  nature,  he  rarely  falls 
short  of  a  proper  appreciation.  What  has  been  said 
of  another  may  be  applied  to  him,  "that  he  has  that 
true  taste  which  is  always  catholic  in  its  admirations; 
that  he  can  find  intense  pleasure  in  the  regal  gardens 
of  Versailles,  without  losing  his  relish  for  the  dewy 
glades  of  a  primeval  forest."  His  acquaintance  with 
books  is  general,  but  his  principal  acquisitions  are  in 
what  is  comprehended  under  Polite  Literature.  With 
the  classic  authors  of  England  and  France  particularly, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        293 

he  has  great  familiarity.  With  the  great  poets,  writers 
of  fiction,  dramatists  and  essayists,  he  has  kept  com- 
pany from  early  life,  and  few  among  us  have  profited 
as  much  by  it.  Eminently  aesthetic  in  his  tastes,  he 
always  pauses  to  behold  the  forms  of  beauty,  as  they 
are  presented  on  the  right  hand  and  the  left.  These 
have  easy  access  to  his  mind,  and  find  a  place  in 
all  their  infinite  variety.  May  I  risk  the  figure  of 
likening  his  mind  to  a  parterre  of  evergreens  and 
flowers,  all  arranged  with  exquisite  taste,  ornamented 
with  fountains  and  statuary,  and  winding,  pebbly 
brooks.  Aptness  and  facility  of  quotation  have  ever 
been  a  marked  feature  in  his  literary  character.  Few 
subjects  indeed  can  be  suggested,  on  which  he  cannot 
bring  to  bear  at  once  this  beautiful  and  attractive 
mode  of  illustration.  Mr.  Preston's  acquirements  in  the 
languages  are  restricted  to  the  modern;  and  in  the 
French  particularly  he  is  well  skilled.  He  makes  no 
pretension  to  a  critical  knowledge  of  the  Greek  and 
Latin,  but  is  not  without  a  most  commendable  acquain- 
tance with  their  literature.  He  has  drank  largely  at 
this  ancient  fountain  of  thought  and  wisdom,  and  no 
little  of  its  sublime  spirit  has  been  imparted  to  him. 
He  is  not  then  wholly  without 

"  The  large  utterance  of  the  early  Gods." 

In  conversational  power  I  have  never  met  his  equal. 
Who  that  has  ever  heard  him  can  forget  his  point, 
his  anecdote,  his  fullness,  his  variety,  his  ease,  his 
grace,  his  vivacity,  his  elegance,  his  imitative  talent, 
and  that  curious  felicity  of  expression  which  in  South 
Carolina  has  been  characterized  as  Prestonian.  The 


294        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

reader  will  pardon  me  for  saying,  that  I  have  been 
asked  frequently  by  my  friends  to  accompany  them  on  a 
call  upon  him,  for  no  other  reason  than  that  they 
wished  to  avail  themselves  of  the  charms  of  his  con- 
versation. It  follows  from  what  has  been  said,  by 
necessary  consequence,  that  such  a  man  must  be  con- 
spicuous in  all  the  relations  of  social  intercourse.  I 
am  sure  I  am  not  guilty  of  extravagance  when  I 
say,  that  no  one  in  our  State  ever  attracted  larger 
admiration  in  this  particular.  In  every  circle  "he 
was  the  observed  of  all  observers,"  arid  shone  with 
surpassing  brilliancy. 

I  have  thus  endeavored  to  give  briefly  my  impres- 
sions of  the  intellect  and  attainments  of  Mr.  Preston. 
I  conclude  this  part  of  my  subject  with  the  remark, 
that  his  whole  soul  is  full  of  ardor  and  enthusiasm; 
that  feeling  enters,  perhaps,  too  much  into  his  judg- 
ments, and  that  he  is  not  disposed  to  listen  patiently 
to  the  lessons  of  a  calm  and  sober  philosophy.  He  is 
inclined,  therefore,  to  push  his  opinions  too  far;  to 
overlook  the  proper  conditions  and  qualifications,  and 
in  the  excesses  of  emotion,  to  go  beyond  the  bounds 
of  a  strict  reality.  But  he  is  by  nature  both  -  a 
painter  and  a  poet,  and  from  the  times  of  Horace,  it 
has  been  a  maxim,  that 

il  Painters  and  poets  have  been  still  allow'd 
Their  pencils  and  their  fancies  unconfmed." 

Lastly,  I  am  to  speak  of  him  as  the  President  of  the 
College.  It  has  been  seen  that  his  political  life  was 
terminated  by  his  withdrawal  from  the  Senate,  and 
that  at  a  period  of  life  which  must  be  regarded  as 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        295 

advanced,  he  again  established  an  office  in  Columbia 
with  the  view  of  returning  to  the  practice  of  the  bar. 
This  I  know  was  rather  a  matter  of  necessity  than 
of  choice.  He  must  do  something;  he  could  not 
remain  inactive,  and  he  felt  that  he  had  not  the  liberty 
of  selection.  His  health  was  now  impaired,  and  he 
was  not  in  a  proper  condition  to  meet  the  labors,  the 
turmoils,  and  the  strife  of  his  ancient  profession.  A 
graduate  of  the  College,  and  with  brilliant  reputation, 
nothing  was  more  natural  than  that  the  Trustees 
should  look  to  him  to  supply  the  vacancy  which  had 
occurred,  and  nothing,  I  may  add,  was  more  obvious 
than  that  he  could  not  decline  the  call  made  upon 
him.  He  accepted  accordingly,  and  it  is  my  purpose 
now  to  add  a  few  words  upon  his  administration.  It 
has  already  been  traced  with  something  of  minuteness 
in  my  historical  narrative,  and  I  conceive  that  much 
of  the  labor,  which  otherwise  would  be  devolved  upon 
me,  is  now  rendered  unnecessary.  To  a  few  promin- 
ent points,  however,  it  is  proper  that  I  call  attention. 
His  most  ardent  admirers  will  not  say  that  he  brought 
to  the  Chair  profound  learning,  or  exact  scholarship; 
but  he  did  bring  the  rich  fruits  of  a  large  experience 
in  professional  and  political  life,  a  varied  knowledge,  a 
refined  and  cultivated  intellect,  and  a  prestige  enviable 
and  commanding.  His  feeble  health  interfered  much 
with  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  but  no  one  exhibited 
a  more  becoming  zeal,  or  a  livelier  sense  of  his  high 
responsibility.  His  instructions  in  the  class-room  were 
peculiarly  inviting;  and  as  with  glowing  enthusiasm, 
and  in  clear,  perspicuous  and  picturesque  language, 
he  called  the  attention  of  the  students  to  the  mighty 


296        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

men,  who  by  their  works  have  ennobled  literature, 
there  were  few,  if  any,  whose  admiration  was  not 
enkindled,  and  whose  souls  did  not  catch  a  portion  of 
his  inspiration.  His  administration,  as  has  been  seen, 
was  marked  by  some  great  riots  and  rebellions.  Upon 
the  whole,  however,  I  think  that  the  amount  of 
study  and  proficiency  was  fully  equal  to  that  of  any 
former  period.  I  conceive  that  others  have  surpassed 
him  in  administrative  ability.  But  it  might  have 
been  otherwise  had  his  health  been  good.  The  life  of 
a  President  of  a  College  is  one  of  never-ending  care, 
anxiety  and  perplexity,  and  I  submit,  as  humbling  as 
the  suggestion  may  appear,  that  in  addition  to  other 
qualities,  he  should  possess  physical  vigor  and  en- 
durance. But  whatever  may  be  the  deductions,  most 
true  is  it,  that  his  administration  will  be  regarded  as 
one  of  the  most  brilliant  in  the  history  of  the  College. 
He  has  added  new  lustre  to  the  bright  roll  of  its 
Presidents,  and  enjoying  a  national  reputation  before 
his  elevation,  none  have  contributed  more  to  spread 
the  fame  of  the  Institution  throughout  the  length  and 
breadth  of  the  country.  Nor  was  the  Board  of  Trus- 
tees insensible  to  the  value  of  his  services.  It  will  be 
remembered  that  about  a  year  before  his  disconnection 
with  the  College,  he  tendered  his  resignation  in  conse- 
quence of  ill  health.  On  that  occasion  the  following 
proceedings  took  place : 

Resolved,  That  the  Board  receive  with  deep  sensi- 
bility, the  resignation  of  the  Hon.  William  C.  Preston 
of  the  office  of  President  of  the  South  Carolina  College, 
lamenting  the  necessity  imposed  upon  him  by  illness, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        297 

of  relinquishing  the  arduous  and  important  task  which 
he  has  discharged  with  signal  dignity  and  ability,  and 
with  such  unwearied  faithfulness  and  assiduity,  even 
under  the  pressure  of  disease,  and  against  the  reluc- 
tance of  overtasked  nature. 

His  interest  in  the  College  did  not  cease  with  his 
retirement  from  the  Presidency.  He  was  elected  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  and  until  December, 
1857,  was  a  regular  attendant  upon  its  sessions,  and 
as  far  as  his  health  would  permit,  an  active  participant 
in  its  labors.  The  College  is  as  much  as  ever  the 
object  of  his  affections.  He  loves  to  linger  amid  its 
delightful  groves;  to  look  upon  the  temples  dedicated 
to  knowledge,  and  to  call  up  the  memories  of  those 
days  when  he  personally  mingled  in  the  stirring 
incidents  of  College  life.  The  cordial  greeting  which 
he  always  receives  from  the  students  upon  his  occa- 
sional visits  to  the  Halls  at  times  of  public  exercises, 
but  attest  the  impression  which  he  has  left  behind 
him,  and  the  admiration  of  his  genius  and  services. 
Under  the  pressure  of  the  most  crushing  bodily 
infirmities,  which  for  many  years  have  threatened 
the  instant  extinction  of  life,  he  still  survives,  with  his 
energies  unabated,  and  dispensing  the  richest  blessings 
to  the  community  of  which  he  is  a  member.  Cheerful, 
social  and  communicative,  he  is  yet  the  delight  of  the 
limited  circle  in  which  he  moves,  and  with  a  joyous 
resignation  calmly  awaits  the  summons,  which  he 
momentarily  expects,  to  the  land  of  spirits.  He  is  an 
humble  worshipper  in  the  Episcopal  Communion;  and 
oh!  what  an  example  for  the  distinguished  of  earth! 


298        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

He  has  cast  all  his  hopes  upon  the  Saviour  of  man- 
kind. But  I  have  said  that  he  is  dispensing  the 
richest  blessings  to  the  community  around  him.  Let 
me  point  to  that  noble  monument  of  his  liberality,  his 
benevolence,  and  his  love  of  letters;  I  mean  the 
Columbia  Athenaeum.  This  Institution  was  projected 
by  him  for  the  benefit  of  the  public.  Its  main  pur- 
pose is  to  meet  the  demand  of  those  who  are  too 
poor  to  meet  it  in  the  ordinary  way;  to  create  a  more 
wide-spread  taste  for  knowledge,  and  by  its  greater 
diffusion,  to  secure  in  larger  measure  those  ennobling 
and  elevating  influences  which  it  is  so  well  calculated 
to  produce.  To  carry  out  his  purpose,  he  made  a  gift 
of  his  library,  containing  nearly  three  thousand 
volumes.  Valuable  additions  have  been  made  by 
other  gentlemen.  An  association  has  been  organized, 
and  the  affairs  of  the  Institution  are  administered  by  a 
Board  of  Directors,  of  which  he  is  the  President. 
There  are  now  besides  the  library,  a  reading  room 
and  a  lecture  room;  the  reading  room  containing 
newspapers  and  periodicals  from  all  the  leading  sections 
of  the  United  States,  with  some  also  from  Europe,  and 
the  lecture  room  being  appropriated  to  the  delivery  of 
lectures  for  the  benefit  of  the  public.  The  zeal,  the 
energy  displayed  by  him  in  this  noble  work,  are  alike 
beautiful  and  wonderful.  Day  by  day  is  he  to  be  seen 
in  that  library  room,  which  now  seems  to  have  attrac- 
tion for  him  not  presented  by  any  other  spot;  and  ever 
gracing  by  his  presence  the  spacious  hall  upon  occa- 
sions of  lecture,  the  refined  enjoyment  afforded  him  is 
plainly  marked  in  his  countenance.  Always  present 
at  the  meeting  of  the  Board,  ever  participating  actively 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        299 

in  its  business,  I  am  sure  that  no  one  who  witnesses 
his  labors  will  regard  any  language  of  compliment  as 
fulsome  and  extravagant.  By  appeals  through  the 
press,  by  personal  intercourse  with  our  citizens,  by 
enlisting  in  the  cause  as  lecturers  the  most  distin- 
guished gentlemen,  by  all  honorable  and  proper  means 
is  he  striving  to  awaken  a  more  general  interest,  and 
to  place  the  Institution  upon  a  more  stable  foundation. 
What  patriot,  what  lover  of  letters,  what  friend  of 
humanity,  does  not  wish  him  the  largest  success  in  his 
noble  enterprize !  What  a  work  with  which  to  close 
the  evening  of  his  days !  What  a  legacy  for  the 
people  with  whom  his  lot  has  been  cast!  What  an 
appropriate  return  for  the  partiality  which  through 
life  they  have  exhibited  for  him ;  for  the  honors  and 
distinctions  which  they  have  bestowed  upon  him! 
His  sun  is  setting,  but  no  dark  clouds  rest  upon  the 
horizon.  Kays  of  unwonted  beauty  and  effulgence 
illumine  the  western  sky,  and  the  great  luminary 
sinks,  encircled  by  a  flood  of  light  and  glory. 

The  Kev.  Dr.  Thornwell,  the  President  elect, 
entered  upon  his  duties,  January  7,  1852.  The  num- 
ber of  students  was  197.  The  course  of  studies 
underwent  no  change  for  the  last  several  years,  and  it 
is  unnecessary,  therefore,  to  repeat  the  curriculum. 
The  period  is  one  of  great  interest,  as  it  is  marked  by 
the  elevation  of  a  man  to  the  Presidency  whose  genius 
and  learning  were  to  shed  new  lustre  upon  it,  and 
largely  enhance  the  fame  of  the  College.  The  Presi- 
dent made  his  first  report  to  the  Board  at  their  meet- 
ing of  May  5.  In  reading  the  minutes  of  the  Faculty 
to  the  close  of  the  Session  in  July,  I  perceive  nothing 


300        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

worthy  of  special  notice.  There  were  disorders,  but 
none  of  a  very  serious  nature.  The  Faculty  were 
not  without  something  to  do,  and  the  discipline  of  the 
College  had  been  steadily  and  firmly  maintained;  the 
students  had  been  kept  busy,  and  each  department 
was  regular  and  punctual  in  its  exactions.  Although 
unusual  sickness  had  prevailed,  there  was  a  gratifying 
attention  to  study.  The  Commons  for  once  was  going 
on  smoothly;  not  a  single  complaint  had  been  made  to 
the  President,  or  to  any  of  the  Professors.  This,  as 
will  be  seen,  was  delusive ;  it  was  the  calm  only 
which  precedes  the  storm.  One  of  the  most  striking 
suggestions  in  the  report  of  the  President,  is  a  sugges- 
tion in  reference  to  Dr.  Henry.  It  is  most  honorable 
to  the  author,  as  it  exhibits  his  full  appreciation  of  the 
learning  and  services  of  that  excellent  man,  and  the 
abiding  love  and  respect  which  he  indulged  towards 
him.  He  informs  the  Board  that  Dr.  Henry  has 
given  to  his  administration  the  most  cordial  support, 
that  his  health  is  gradually  failing  under  the  burden 
of  his  duties,  but  that  without  murmur  or  complaint 
he  continues  to  make  the  sacrifice  which  his  Chair 
exacts.  Under  these  circumstances,  he  hopes  that 
some  scheme  may  be  devised  by  which  his  salary  may 
be  secured,  and  his  labors  diminished,  or  remitted. 
He  pleads  his  cause  with  an  earnestness  which 
shows  that  his  heart  is  deeply  enlisted :  "  His  age 
and  learning,  and  long  connection  with  the  College, 
entitle  him  to  more  than  ordinary  consideration,  and 
there  are  peculiar  circumstances  in  his  case  which 
would  justify  distinguished  and  extraordinary  honors 
to  him  without  the  risk  of  a  dangerous  precedent.  I 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        301 

am  sure,  too,  that  his  colleagues  would  delight  to  see 
him  placed  in  a  situation  in  which  his  declining  years 
might  be  spent  without  drudgery  or  toil."     The  fact 
which  I  have  thus  brought  to  public  notice,  is  worthy 
of  it  in  more  than  one  particular.     It  shows  the  high 
estimate  which  Dr.  Thornwell  places  upon  learning, 
and  that  he  would  be  pleased  to  see  the  veteran  Pro- 
fessor, who  has  worn  out  his  life  by  serving  his  State, 
receive  a  pension  at  her  hands.     The  soldier  who  is 
wounded  in  battle  is  provided  for  by  his  country ;  and 
if  he  falls,  his   wife    and   children  share  its  bounty. 
And  does  he  render  a  less  worthy  service  who  toils 
for  a  life-time,   through   sickness  and   want,  in  the 
noble  work  of  training  the  youth   for  the   duties  01 
life,    and   distributing  far   and  wide  the  rich  fruits 
of  wisdom  and  knowledge?     But  to  me  the  sugges- 
tion in   the    report  speaks    something   even    higher 
and  holier  than  this.     Dr.  Henry  is  now  no  more, 
and   to   him    earthly  friendships  are    gone    forever. 
I  knew  him  well,  and  none  understood  better  than 
myself  the  relations  between  these  gentlemen.     To  my 
mind  there  is  something  beautiful  in  the  friendship 
which  subsisted   between  them.     However  heartless 
may  be  the  profession  generally,  however  easy  it  may 
be  in  most  cases  to  snap  asunder  the  ties  which  con- 
nect men  together,  there  is  yet  such  a  thing  as  friend- 
ship which  defies   time   and  circumstance,  and  ter- 
minates  only  in   death.     Such  a  friendship  existed 
between  them,  and  it  was  permanent  and  unalterable, 
because  it  was  deep-rooted  in  affection.     Nor  did  the 
Board  fail  to  give  all    proper  consideration   to   the 
suggestion  of  the  President.   While  freely  according  any 
19 


302        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

temporary  relaxation  which  might  be  necessary,  it 
regrets  that  it  is  not  able  to  devise  any  scheme 
by  which  the  suggestion  can  be  carried  out,  as  the 
salary  is  appropriated  by  the  Legislature  to  com- 
pensate the  officer  for  services  to  be  rendered  in 
the  Institution.  It  was  manifestly  then  a  matter 
of  which  it  had  no  jurisdiction,  and  which  apper- 
tained exclusively  to  the  Legislature.  May  10,  the 
Board  appointed  a  Committee  of  its  own  number  to 
build  the  new  chapel.  November  24,  the  President  sub- 
mitted the  Annual  Report  to  the  Board.  He  communi- 
cated the  resignation  of  Col.  Gladden,  the  Bursar,  and 
the  fact  of  the  temporary  appointment  of  his  assistant 
until  the  meeting  of  the  Board.  But  an  issue  of  most 
serious  character  was  now  tendered.  The  Trustees  had 
refused  the  petition  of  the  students  to  modify  the 
Commons  system,  and  they  determined  again  to 
memorialize,  with  the  secret  written  pledge,  that  if 
not  successful,  they  would  withdraw  from  the  College 
by  taking  dismissals.  I  believe  that  no  act  of  direct 
rebellion  was  contemplated;  that  it  was  never  intended 
that  the  conspiracy  should  come  to  the  knowledge 
either  of  the  Faculty  or  the  Trustees,  and  that  they 
believed  they  had  not  bound  themselves  to  any 
measures  which  the  laws  of  the  College  prohibit.  The 
fact  is  simply  this  :  they  determined  to  break  it  up, 
and  concluded  they  could  accomplish  their  end  by 
a  peaceful  withdrawal.  The  President  assures  the 
Board  that  the  whole  system  had  been  odious  for 
years,  that  various  efforts  had  been  made  for  its  aboli- 
tion or  essential  modification,  that  the  dissatisfac- 
tion had  ripened  into  a  settled  disgust,  and  that  they 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        303 

literally  loathed  the  establishment.  The  question 
was  felt  by  the  President  to  be  one  of  extreme  embar- 
rassment, and  the  Trustees  fully  estimated  its 
importance.  To  grant  the  petition  was  to  make 
concessions  to  the  spirit  of  rebellion;  to  refuse  it 
altogether,  and  retain  the  system  in  its  present  rigor, 
was  to  get  rid  probably  of  upwards  of  one  hundred  young 
men,  who  were  pledged  to  leave  the  Institution.  The 
prevailing  opinion  in  the  Board  was,  that  the  act  was 
one  of  unlawful  combination,  and  the  real  question  for 
consideration  was,  whether  under  the  circumstances  any 
action  whatever  could  be  had  on  the  petition  without 
weakening  the  authorities  of  the  College.  A  Committee 
of  Trustees  was  appointed  to  confer  with  the  Committee 
of  the  Students,  with  the  view  of  ascertaining  more 
precisely  the  nature  of  the  pledge  and  the  character  of 
the  whole  matter.  In  a  written  communication  from 
the  students,  their  position  was  fully  declared.  Dr. 
Thorn  well  addressed  a  second  letter  to  the  Board,  in 
which  he  took  ground  against  the  rigid  enforcement  of 
the  law,  and  urged  such  a  modification  of  the  Com- 
mons system  as  would  relieve  it  of  its  objectionable 
features,  and  thus  remove  all  cause  of  complaint. 
In  the  meantime  a  memorial  to  the  same  effect  was 
addressed  to  the  Board,  signed  by  a  Committee  of  thirty 
students,  who  did  not  enter  into  the  combination.  The 
Board  finally  disposed  of  the  matter  by  the  adoption  of 
the  following  resolution :  That  the  recommendation  of 
the  President  of  the  College  to  modify  the  Commons,  and 
the  memorial  of  the  thirty  students,  are  entitled  to  the 
favorable  consideration  of  the  Board;  and  that  a  Com- 
mittee be  appointed  to  devise  a  plan  for  carrying  out  the 


304        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

recommendation    of   the  President,    and    that    said 
Committee  report  at  the  meeting  in  May  next. 

Thus  terminated,  it  was  hoped  favorably,  this  seri- 
ous issue.  The  President  reports  the  deportment  of  the 
young  men  as  so  unexceptionable  since  their  return  in, 
October,  that  the  Faculty  have  had  no  occasion  to  inflict 
any  serious  penalties.  All  the  exercises  had  been  well 
attended,  and  an  unusual  quiet  had  pervaded  the 
Campus.  The  interest  apparently  felt  in  the  Sunday 
services  of  the  Chapel  had  given  great  satisfaction, 
and  a  more  orderly,  respectful  and  decorous  congrega- 
tion was  nowhere  to  be  found.  "Everything,"  says 
he,  "  seems  to  be  in  a  most  promising  condition,  but  I 
have  long  since  learned  that  in  College  life  it  is  not 
safe  to  trust  to  appearances.  Perpetual  vigilance  is 
the  only  guarantee  of  order."  He  discusses  the  ques- 
tion, how  our  present  system,  without  organic  and 
fundamental  changes,  can  be  rendered  more  effective 
as  an  instrument  of  intellectual  discipline,  and  makes 
some  very  important  suggestions.  I  will  call  attention 
only  to  one  or  two  of  them  as  they  have  been  adopted, 
and  have  been  ever  since  enforced  among  us.  He 
takes  ground  against  the  notion  which  is  almost 
universally  prevalent  in  American  Colleges,  that  a 
young  man's  diligence  and  proficiency  are  to  be  judged 
by  the  average  merit  of  his  several  recitations  in  the 
class-room,  and  not  by  the  general  examination.  He 
proposes,  therefore,  to  make  the  examination  the  true 
criterion  of  merit.  In  order  to  do  this,  it  must  be 
thorough;  embracing  the  entire  subjects  of  each 
department  upon  which  instruction  has  been  given. 
There  should  be  a  minimum  attainment  as  the  indis- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        305 

pensable  condition  of  passing,  and  a  graduated  scale 
of  excellence  as  the  condition  of  honors.  To  make 
it  thorough,  he  proposes  that  it  be  conducted  princi- 
pally in  writing,  and  that  ample  time  be  allowed 
for  the  exercises.  He  asks  permission  to  begin  this 
mode  of  examination  in  June.  The  plan  of  written 
examinations  has  been  pursued  from  that  day  to  the 
present;  and  I  express  the  opinion  with  confidence, 
that  it  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  reforms  which  has 
ever  been  introduced  into  the  College.  A  student  who 
knows  but  little  may  get  off  quite  well  in  the  class- 
room. The  young  men  of  the  College  are  wonderfully 
adroit  and  cunning;  learned  in. the  doctrine  of  chances 
and  probabilities,  and  marvellously  fertile  in  the  inven- 
tion of  expedients  for  the  attainment  of  their  ends. 
A  Professor  may  not  call  upon  the  members  of  his 
classes  in  alphabetical  order;  he  may,  as  he  conceives, 
proceed  at  random,  but  the  very  necessities  of  the 
case,  and  the  very  wants  of  the  human  mind,  will 
force  upon  him  a  sort  of  general  system,  which  they 
will  be  the  first  to  perceive,  and  use  to  their  advan- 
tage, when  he  is  not  conscious  of  it.  He  will  get  into 
a  habit  of  doing  things  in  a  particular  way  in  his 
recitation-room,  as  men  get  particular  habits  in  every- 
thing else  which  they  have  to  do  with  regularity.  In 
a  written  examination  the  line  between  the  idle  and 
ignorant,  and  the  industrious  and  well-informed,  must 
of  necessity  be  distinctly  drawn.  It  will  distinguish 
real  merit.  Nothing  can  secure  a  good  mark  but  pro- 
ficiency, and  this  proficiency  must  extend  generally 
over  the  course  of  instruction.  The  questions  are 
carefully  prepared,  always  embrace  many  of  the  most 


306        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

difficult  problems  in  the  department,  and  it  is  impos- 
sible for  any  other  than  the  best  scholars  to  reach  by 
their  answers  a  high  degree  of  excellence.  The  same 
questions  are  asked  of  all;  there  is  no  room  for  "luck," 
and  the  relative  merit  can  thus  be  fixed  with  all 
attainable  precision  and  accuracy.  Dr.  Thorn  well  also 
suggested  to  the  Board  to  revive  the  prizes  which  were 
proposed  in  1844.  This  was  done,  and  it  has  been 
attended  by  the  most  wholesome  effect.  One  more 
point  in  his  report,  and  I  have  done.  He  urges  upon 
the  Board  that  the  efficiency  of  the  College  would  be 
promoted  by  shortening  the  session;  and  his  sug- 
gestion was  adopted  to  the  extent  of  granting  a  holiday 
from  the  second  Monday  in  December  to  the  first 
Monday  in  January.  The  number  of  students  on 
the  Catalogue  is  199.  As  the  Board  adjourned  with- 
out granting  immediate  relief  to  the  memorialists  on 
the  subject  of  the  Commons,  the  signers  felt  it  to  be 
their  duty  to  carry  out  their  pledge,  and  leave  the 
College.  Though  it  be  true  that  a  pledge  to  do  an 
unlawful  act  imposes  no  moral  obligation,  I  have 
always  thought  that  there  was  a  substantial  granting 
of  the  prayer  of  the  memorial,  and  that  upon  every 
ground  the  withdrawal  from  the  College  was  uncalled 
for  and  unnecessary.  Though  the  feature  of  compul- 
sory attendance  should  long  before  have  been  abrogated 
because  of  the  many  unanswerable  objections  to  it, 
and  because  the  best  interests  of  the  College  called 
loudly  for  a  system  based  upon  a  different  principle, 
still,  I  think  that  the  question  now  came  up  in  an 
offensive  form,  and  that  under  the  circumstances  the 
Board  acted  with  great  forbearance  and  generosity. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  withdrawal  of  so  many  students  told  with  fear- 
ful import  upon  the  numbers  for  1853,  the  Catalogue 
giving  only  122.  The  President  made  the  usual  report 
in  May.  Of  course  the  College  was  not  wholly 
exempt  from  disorder,  but  the  general  deportment  was 
excellent.  There  was  a  pervading  respect  for  the  law, 
and  the  tone  of  sentiment  was  unusually  good.  The 
Committee  appointed  at  the  December  meeting  on  the 
Commons,  made  its  report  according  to  instructions. 
This  report  provided  for  the  licensing  of  boarding 
houses  on  certain  conditions,  the  continuance  of  the 
Bursary  under  new  regulations,  and  the  introduction 
of  the  new  system  in  October.  It  has  been  in 
operation  from  that  day  to  the  present,  and  the  suc- 
cess has  been  complete.  A  great  cause  of  dissatisfac- 
tion has  been  removed,  and  I  trust  that  this  vexed 
question  of  feeding  the  students  is  now  settled  forever. 
There  is  one  feature  in  the  system  to  which  I  must 
call  attention  for  a  moment,  as  it  has  an  importance 
of  which  perhaps  many  of  the  Board  are  not  aware. 
This  feature  is  the  continuance  of  the  Bursary,  with 
the  conditions  of  a  stipulated  price  for  board,  and  the 
control  of  the  Faculty  during  the  recess  of  the  Board. 
The  effect  of  this  is  to  give  protection  against  unrea- 
sonable prices  on  the  part  of  the  private  boarding 
houses,  and  to  secure  fidelity  on  the  part  of  the  Bursar. 
Many  students  willingly  pay  more  for  board  at  these 


308        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

licensed  houses  than  the  price  at  the  Hall.  There 
are  still  prejudices  operating  against  this  ancient 
establishment,  which  time,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  will 
in  the  end  remove  altogether.  The  old  name  of 
"Commons"  still  lives,  notwithstanding  the  solemn 
enactment  by  the  supreme  authority,  that  it  is 
a  "Bursary;"  the  place  is  the  same,  and  many 
associations  connect  it  with  the  past.  For  these 
reasons,  most  of  the  young  men  prefer  the  licensed 
houses;  but  time  here,  as  time  always  does,  is  weak- 
ening the  force  of  impressions,  and  gradually  accom- 
plishing the  work  of  oblivion.  The  Hall  is  not 
so  offensive  as  to  keep  students  away  from  it,  if  the 
private  houses  charge,  as  they  conceive,  extravagant 
rates.  I  have  already  known  it  to  be  filled  upon  the 
occasion  of  a  combination  among  the  proprietors  of  the 
licensed  houses  to  increase  the  price  of  board.  The 
system  is  now  as  perfect  as  human  wisdom  can  make 
it;  the  feature  to  which  I  have  alluded  is  its  great 
security,  and  I  hope  that  it  will  never  be  disturbed. 
At  this  meeting  of  the  Board,  a  Committee  reported 
upon  the  by-laws,  as  revised  and  amended  by  the 
Board,  and  the  report  was  adopted,  and  ordered  to  be 
published.  To  it  are  appended  various  acts  of  the 
Legislature  in  reference  to  the  College,  the  regulations 
of  the  Faculty,  of  the  Library  Committee,  of  the  Exe- 
cutive Committee,  and  other  matters.  I  have  already 
spoken  of  the  action  concerning  the  Commons,  and  I 
think  proper  now  to  call  attention  only  to  the  legisla- 
tion in  reference  to  the  Commencement,  the  honors  and 
the  distinctions.  This  is  important,  as  it  introduced 
a  system  entirely  different  from  that  which  previously 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        309 

obtained,  and  which  I  believe  had  been  of  force  since 
the  foundation  of  the  College.  I  shall  take  occasion 
to  present  the  two,  that  the  reader  may  judge  of  their 
relative  merits.  According  to  the  old  system,  each 
department  voted  independently,  and  he  who  stood 
first  in  the  majority  of  the  departments,  received  the 
first  honor  of  his  class.  It  was  entirely  possible  then, 
as  will  at  once  be  perceived,  for  a  student  to  have  no 
position  in  certain  departments,  and  yet  receive  the 
highest  honor.  There  is  no  doubt  that  this  was  not 
unfrequently  made  a  matter  of  calculation.  A  young 
man  would  select  those  departments  which  were  most 
congenial  to  his  tastes,  and  neglecting  the  others,  by 
a  devotion  of  all  his  powers  to  them,  could  calculate 
surely  upon  a  high  position  in  the  end.  In  this  con- 
dition of  things,  all  that  he  cared  for  was. that  he 
should  have  such  a  stand  as  would  pass  him  with  the 
Professor.  I  know  the  fact  that  young  men,  under 
this  system,  have  graduated  with  the  highest  honors 
of  the  class,  when  their  attainments  in  more  than  one* 
department  were  scarcely  respectable.  The  following 
is  a  succinct  account  of  the  new  system.  These  are  the 
leading  provisions  in  reference  to  the  Senior  Class  after 
the  final  examination: — The  candidates  shall  be 
arranged  into  three  divisions,  and  the  studies  into  two 
departments.  The  first  department  consists  of  general 
literature,  and  comprehends  all  the  studies  which  may 
be  said  to  depend  on  moral  evidence;  the  second  con- 
sists of  all  those  sciences  which  depend  on  demonstra- 
tion and  experiment.  The  first  division  of  students 
shall  consist  of  those  who  are  distinguished  in  both 
departments  of  study.  The  second  of  those  who  are 


310        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

distinguished  in  only  one  department,  or  in  single 
branches  of  both,  and  the  third  of  those  who  have 
simply  passed.  Those  who  are  placed  in  the  first 
division  shall  receive  honors,  those  in  the  second  dis- 
tinctions, and  the  names  of  both  shall  be  announced 
at  Commencement.  The  student  who  has  most 
distinguished  himself  in  the  two  departments  of  study, 
shall  be  entitled  to  the  first  honor;  the  next  most 
distinguished  to  the  second  honor,  and  so  on  in  order, 
always  giving  the  preference  to  one  who  has  distin- 
guished himself  in  both  departments  of  study.  In 
the  second  division,  the  names  shall  be  announced  in 
the  order  of  merit,  as  each  student  may  have  been 
distinguished  in  one  or  in  both  departments.  The 
first  division-men  to  the  number  of  ten  shall  be 
appointed  to  speak  at  Commencement.  It  is  provided, 
too,  that  after  the  rising  examination  of  the  three 
under-classes,  the  names  of  the  most  distinguished 
shall  be  announced,  and  printed.  The  following 
prizes  were  instituted:  for  the  best  Latin  composi- 
tion, a  Gold  MedaJ,  the  competitors  to  be  Sophomores ; 
for  the  best  English  composition,  a  Gold  Medal,  the 
competitors  to  be  Juniors ;  for  the  best  Essay  on  some 
subject  of  Moral  or  Natural  Philosophy,  or  Logic,  a 
Gold  Medal,  the  competitors  to  be  Seniors.  A  prize 
is  also  awarded  for  excellence  in  Elocution,  the  com- 
petitors to  be  Seniors  or  Juniors.  In  all  cases  the 
subjects  are  to  be  assigned  by  the  Faculty.  The  effect 
of  these  enactments  has  been  most  salutary.  Before 
I  dismiss  the  subject,  I  must  make  one  or  two  remarks. 
The  principle  upon  which  the  Faculty  are  to  proceed 
in  the  assignation  of  the  honors  and  distinctions,  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        311 

the  relative  merit  of  each  member  of  a  class,  is  fixed ; 
and  I  have  to  add,  that  it  is  carried  out  by  combining 
the  recitation  in  the  class  room  with  the  examination, 
giving  the  greater  importance,  as  suggested  by  Dr. 
Thornwell,  to  the  latter.  There  is  now  no  balloting 
for  place;  it  is  fixed  by  the  marks,  and  is  simply  an 
arithmetical  result.  To  my  mind  there  is  a  stricter 
justice  in  it,  and  I  know  that  it  has  worked  well. 
There  is  no  possibility  of  neglecting  a  department,  and 
still  bearing  off  the  first  honor.  It  is  the  reward  of  gene- 
ral excellence.  I  think  that  it  has  secured  from  those 
who  are  aspiring  to  honors  and  distinctions,  a  much 
larger  measure  of  attention  to  the  general  curriculum 
of  the  College,  and  thus  stimulated  study.  Our  system 
has  for  many  years  been  regarded  as  defective  in  the 
particular,  that  it  provided  no  rewards  for  special 
excellence;  and  this  defect  was  now  met  by  the 
institution  of  prizes.  It  has  had  a  capital  effect ;  there 
has  always  been  a  fair  amount  of  competition,  and 
thus  a  new  and  healthful  stimulus  to  exertion  has 
been  supplied.  At  the  meeting  of  the  Board,  Novem- 
ber 30,  the  President  made  his  report.  He  remarks 
of  the  examinations  during  the  past  year,  that  they 
were  extremely  creditable  in  all  the  departments ;  that 
they  were  more  thorough  than  usual,  and  conducted 
with  more  gravity,  regularity  and  solemnity;  that  his 
own  personal  observation  justifies  him  in  saying,  that 
the  attention  to  study,  and  to  all  the  exercises  of  the 
College  during  the  whole  year,  has  been  unusually 
uniform  and  steady,  and  that  an  examination  of  the 
Monitor's  Bills  will  exhibit  a  gratifying  improvement 
when  compared  with  any  other  period  in  the  history 


312        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

of  the  College.  The  records  of  the  Faculty  prove  the 
existence  of  occasional  disorders,  such  as  bonfires  and 
illuminations,  but  in  no  case  did  any  attempt  of  the 
kind  produce  general  disturbance.  There  was  no 
shouting  from  the  windows,  no  noises,  and  no  indica- 
tion that  the  College  was  ever  conscious  of  an  effort 
to  do  mischief.  The  temper  of  the  young  men  was 
good.  As  the  majority  of  the  Faculty  were  either 
absent  from  the  Campus,  or  unable  by  sickness  to 
discharge  their  duties,  to  the  students  belong  all  the 
credit  for  the  good  order.  The  President  called  the 
attention  of  the  Board  to  the  fact  that  the  next  winter 
will  be  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of  the  operation  of 
the  College,  and  suggested  that  there  be  a  public  cele- 
bration of  the  event.  He  made  also  the  announcement 
of  the  resignation  of  Professor  Williams,  on  account 
of  ill  health,  and  the  resignation  was  accepted,  to  take 
effect  immediately.  The  following  sketch  of  Professor 
Williams  is  submitted: 

Matthew  J.  Williams  was  born  December  7,  1805, 
in  Elbert  county,  Ga.  His  first  school  was  in  Colum- 
bia county,  near  Wrightsborough.  At  the  age  of  ten 
he  was  removed  from  Columbia  county,  and  placed  first 
at  the  Philomathic  Academy,  and  then  at  Mount 
Pleasant  Academy,  both  in  Elbert  county.  At  a  very 
early  period  he  exhibited  a  genius  for  arithmetic. 
While  at  Mount  Pleasant,  he  received  an  appointment 
to  West  Point,  and  was  admitted  in  June,  1821.  In 
June,  1825,  he  graduated,  and  was  commissioned  in 
the  United  States  Army.  He  was  first  stationed  at 
Old  Point  Comfort,  Virginia;  and  in  April,  1826,  by 
arrangement  with  a  brother  officer,  was  transferred 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        313 

to   the   regiment  stationed  at  Fort   Howard,  at  the 
mouth    of    Fox    river,   which    empties    into    Green 
Bay   on   the   North- West  coast   of   Lake   Michigan. 
In  the  Fall  of  that  year  his   regiment  was  ordered 
to    a  point   on   the  Mississippi   river,  twelve   miles 
below  the  City  of  St.  Louis,  Missouri — a  post   now 
known  as  Jefferson  Barracks.     To  this  point  the  regi- 
ment to  which  he  was  attached,  (the  3d,)   and   two 
others,  (the  1st  and  6th,)  were  ordered  to  repair,  with 
the  view  of  erecting  a  barracks,  and  fitting  it  with  all 
the  appliances  necessary  for  a  School  of  Infantry  prac- 
tice.     His   health   was   feeble,  and  the   unavoidable 
exposure  brought  upon  him  the  severest  rheumatic 
disease.     The  country  was  at  peace,  and  he  tendered 
his  resignation  in  1828.     After  his  resignation,  but. 
before  he  left  Missouri,  he  began  the  study  of  law  in 
the  office  of  A.  L.  Magennis,  Esq.,  of  St.  Louis.     Upon 
his   return    home,    he    continued   his    studies   with 
Chesley  Daniel,   Esq.,  of  Abbeville,    South  Carolina, 
until   the   death   of  that  gentleman,   when  he  went 
to    Lawrenceville,    Georgia,    and    there    completing 
his  preparatory  course,  was  admitted  to  the  bar  of 
that  State.      He   continued   in   the   profession   until 
the  close  of  1835,  when  he  received  an  appointment 
in  the   school  of  the  South  Carolina  Conference  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  established  at  Cokes- 
bury,   Abbeville,   the  duties  of  which  he   continued 
to  discharge  for  eleven  years.     In  December,  1846, 
he  was  elected  Professor  of  Mathematics  in  the  South 
Carolina  College,  and  at  the  close  of  1853,  in  conse- 
quence of  severe  disease,  resigned  his  office. 

I  am  now  to  speak  of  the  intellectual  character  of 


314         HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Professor  Williams,  and  his  qualifications  for  the 
important  chair  which  he  filled  in  the  South  Caro- 
lina College.  His  genius  is  eminently  mathematical. 
The  records  of  West  Point  show  that  he  received  a 
maximum  mark  in  Mathematics.  There  were  but 
three  others  in  his  class  who  attained  a  maximum. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  last  year  at  West  Point,  his 
health  began  to  fail  rapidly,  and  broke  down  just 
before  the  close  of  it.  He  was  unable  to  undergo  the 
fatigue  of  an  examination,  and  was,  in  consequence, 
excused.  But  he  received  his  diploma,  and  an  appoint- 
ment in  the  army.  There  is  no  doubt  that  his  quali- 
fications for  the  chair  to  which  he  was  called  in  the 
South  Carolina  College,  were  eminent.  The  long  ser- 
vice which  he  rendered  in  the  School  at  Cokesbury  was 
a  capital  training  for  the  higher  duties  of  the  Profes- 
sorship. His  health,  though  improved,  was  still 
delicate  when  he  entered  upon  it.  Much  was  expected 
of  him,  as  he  was  well  known  to  many  of  the  leading 
members  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  in  the  Up-Country. 
Nor  was  this  expectation  disappointed.  His  zeal,  his 
industry,  his  thorough  knowledge  of  his  department, 
were  apparent  to  all.  He  became  at  once  a  favorite 
with  his  classes.  Never  have  I  known  a  more  patient 
and  conscientious  teacher.  A  mathematician  by  genius, 
and  by  education,  master  of  all  its  mysteries,  and 
assigning  it  a  rank  superior  to  all  other  branches  of 
knowledge,  he  was  a  good  worker  upon  principle.  His 
enthusiasm  knew  no  bounds,  and  he  was  eloquent 
when  he  became  the  expositor  of  its  claims  upon  the 
public  attention.  Nor  is  there  anything  to  complain 
of  in  this.  Had  he  been  less  devoted  'to  his  favorite 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        315 

pursuit,  had  his  opinion  of  the  rank  of  mathematics 
been  less  exalted,  he  would  not  have  achieved  as  large 
success  as  an  instructor.  It  is  probable  that  no  one 
ever  filled  the  chair  in  the  South  Carolina  College 
with  greater  ability.  He  takes  rank,  then,  among 
her  most  distinguished  Professors.  But  I  would  be 
doing  great  injustice  if  I  confined  myself  simply  to 
the  consideration  of  his  mathematical  genius  and 
attainments.  I  do  not  claim  for  him  a  thorough  and 
critical  knowledge  of  other .  departments ;  but  his 
reading  has  been  general,  and  he  exhibits  that  acquain- 
tance which  becomes  the  educated  gentleman.  But, 
whatever  may  be  the  extent  of  Professor  Williams' 
mathematical  and  other  attainments,  and  the  respect 
to  which  he  is  in  consequence  entitled,  it  is  with  more 
pleasure  that  I  dwell  upon  him  as  a  man.  I  must 
confess  that  though  I  have,  as  I  conceive,  a  just 
appreciation  of  him,  I  know  not  how  I  will  succeed 
in  my  attempt  to  present  him  to  my  readers.  First,  I 
remark  that  of  all  men  I  have  ever  known,  he  is  most 
distinguished  for  a  child-like  simplicity.  Kind  in  his 
nature,  with  a  heart  overflowing  with  sympathy,  most 
apt  to  lend  a  ready  ear  to  the  professions  of  men, 
nothing  is  easier  for  him  than  to  bestow  his  confidence, 
and  thus  become  the  victim  of  imposture.  He  is 
an  entire  stranger  to  all  those  arts  to  which  cunning 
and  unscrupulous  men  resort  for  the  accomplishment 
of  their  ends,  and  with  a  nature  as  transparent  as 
glass,  is  utterly  incapable  of  playing  a  part.  Some 
men  are  so  constituted  that  the  association  of  a  life- 
time will  not  dispel  the  doubt  and  mystery  by  which 
their  characters  are  enveloped.  They  live  and  die 


316        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

an  enigma  to  all  around  them.  It  is  not  so  with 
Professor  Williams.  Free  from  all  disguise,  he  is  seen  at 
once  as  he  is,  and  no  two  men  who  have  enjoyed  the 
opportunity  of  knowing  him,  have  ever  differed  in 
their  conception  of  his  character.  It  is  then  emin- 
ently individual,  and  strongly  distinguished  from  that 
of  other  men.  I  cannot  say  too  much  in  praise  of  his 
moral  excellence.  He  has  his  faults,  but  who  has 
them  not  ?  They  are  the  common  heritage  of  man  ; 
but  it  may  be  said  of  .him  perhaps,  with  as  much 
truth^as  of  any  other  man,  that 

"E'en  his  failings  leaned  to  virtue's  side." 

I  am  not  blinded  by  the  partialities  of  personal 
friendship,  when*  I  say  that  he  is  second  to  none  of  my 
acquaintances  in  meekness,  purity  and  amiability  of 
character.  His  love  of  truth,  his  sense  of  justice,  his 
moderation,  his  punctuality  in  the  discharge  of  duty — 
these  are  some  of  the  shining  virtues  which  he  pos- 
sesses. They  have  taken  root  in  the  soil  of  Christi- 
anity, and  are  watered  by  the  dews  of  Heaven. 
Penetrated  by  the  profoundest  sense  of  religion,  an 
humble  disciple  of  the  Great  Master  of  us  all,  he  is  a 
striking  example  of  the  ennobling  and  elevating  influ- 
ences of  the  Christian  spirit.  He  is  constitutionally 
regardful  of  the  feelings  of  others,  and  extremely 
careful  in  refraining  from  everything  which  might 
give  pain  or  offence.  This  never  proceeds  upon  any 
calculation  of  advantage  to  himself;  there  is,  therefore, 
nothing  of  selfishness  about  it.  A  little  more  of  dog- 
matism, of  peremptoriness,  might  add  something  to 
the  force  of  his  character. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        317 

The  health  of  Professor  Williams  became  sensibly 
worse  in  1853,  and  the  President,  in  his  Annual  Report 
of  November  30,  informed  the  Board  that  he  had  not 
in  consequence  examined  his  classes  in  June ;  that  his 
physicians  had  put  an  absolute  interdict  upon  any 
attempt  to  undergo  its  labor  and  fatigue.  He  left 
the  Campus  in  October  to  try  the  effects  of  rest  and 
relaxation  on  his  debilitated  system.  The  language 
of  the  President  is  so  complimentary,  that  I  cannot 
forbear  quoting  it : — "  I  cannot  express  to  you  how  much 
I  value  his  services  in  the  department  which  he  fills, 
and  I  should  regard  it  as  a  most  deplorable  calamity 
to  the  College  to  be  deprived  of  his  labors."  After 
writing  his  report,  the  President  received  through  the 
hands  of  the  son  of  Professor  Williams,  the  resigna- 
tion of  his  chair,  which  was  communicated  immedi- 
ately to  the  Board.  Thus  terminated  his  connection 
with  the  South  Carolina  College — an  event  which 
awakened  profound  regret  with  all  the  friends  of  the 
Institution.  The  Board  of  Trustees  passed  the  follow- 
ing resolution : 

Resolved,  That  this  Board  entertain  a  strong  sense 
of  the  eminent  ability  and  faithful  diligence  with 
which  Professor  Williams  discharged  the  duties  of  his 
department  in  the  College,  and  deeply  lament  the 
necessity  which  has  occasioned  his  resignation. 

He  has  ever  since  resided  at  the  beautiful  town  of 

Marietta,  Georgia,  and  though  his  health  has  improved, 

he  is  too  feeble  to  enter  upon  the  active  duties  of  life. 

But  a  kind  Providence  still  spares  him  to  his  family 

20 


318        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

and  his  friends.  Cheerful  thought!  Yet  "cheerful 
thoughts  often  bring  sad  thoughts  to  the  mind."  How 
vividly  does  memory  call  up  the  intimate  companion- 
ship, the  common  labors,  the  hopes,  the  joys  of  former 
days.  I  feel  that  the  sad  word  farewell  has  been 
pronounced;  that  the  sunshine  has  departed;  that 
cloud-shadows  have  succeeded,  and  that  our  com- 
munion on  earth  has  ceased  forever.  I  cannot  resist 
the  impression,  that  we  have  stood  together  for  the 
last  time  on  the  sea  shore,  and  that  the  ship  which 
separates  us  is  embarked  on  its  long  voyage  to  the 
uttermost  parts  of  the  earth.  But  let  me  not  retire 
into  the  sad  places  of  memory,  and  gather  food  for 
tears.  Rather  let  me  think  that  he  has  accomplished 
his  full  mission  on  earth,  and  dwell  only  upon  the 
sanctifying  influences  which  were  begotten  by  a  long 
personal  association,  and  which,  in  the  too  sad  retro- 
spect of  life,  like  sun-light  gild  the  distant  view,  and 
relieve  it  of  the  pitchy  darkness  which  otherwise 
would  rest  upon  it. 

December  7,  C.  F.  M'Cay  was  elected  to  the  vacant 
Professorship  of  Mathematics.  He  is  a  native  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  a  graduate  of  a  Northern  College, 
but  at  the  time  of  his  election,  was  a  Professor  in  the 
Georgia  University,  where  he  had  taught  with 
success  for  many  years.  The  Trustees  resolved  to 
celebrate  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of  the  College, 
and  the  Hon.  James  L.  Petigru  was  appointed  to 
deliver  an  oration  on  the  occasion.  I  have  now  called 
attention  to  the  leading  events  of  the  year  1853.  It 
must  be  pronounced  a  year  of  decided  success.  The 
little  irregularities  which  took  place  detract  in  no 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        319 

degree  from  the  praise  to  which  it  is  entitled.  There 
was  a  pervading  spirit  of  order  and  study,  and  rarely, 
perhaps,  has  a  more  general  and  uniform  obedience 
been  rendered  to  the  authority  of  law. 

The  Board  of  Trustees  had  their  first  meeting  for 
1854,  May  3,  and  the  President  submitted  his  report, 
with  the  accompanying  reports  of  the  Professors. 
The  predictions  in  his  report  of  the  state  of  the  Col- 
lege in  1854,  received  their  full  verification.  "I  am 
glad,"  says  he,  "that  I  can  speak  in  strong  terms  of 
commendation  of  the  diligence,  attention  and  profi- 
ciency of  the  classes.  I  do  not  think  that  I  have  ever 
succeeded  in  securing  as  large  an  amount  of  study 
from  any  class  as  I  have  obtained  during  the  present 
session  from  those  under  my  charge.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  the  standard  of  study  is  increasing,  and 
the  standard  of  general  deportment  keeps  pace  with 
it."  I  would  not  have  the  reader,  however,  believe 
that  the  year  was  one  of  unbroken  quiet.  The  stu- 
dents had  their  periodical  amusements  of  bonfires, 
bombs  and  crackers.  The  discipline  of  the  College 
was  rigidly  enforced,  and  seven  suffered  the  penalty 
of  suspension.  It  was  but  a  piece  of  "fun,"  as  the 
President  calls  it,  and  certainly  they  paid  dearly 
enough  for  it.  With  this  exception,  the  College  was 
in  a  state  of  quiet.  The  report  of  the  President  at 
the  close  of  the  year  is,  if  possible,  of  a  still  more 
encouraging  character.  The  new  system  of  examina- 
tions went  into  operation  in  June,  and  he  informs  the 
Board  that  all  doubts  as  to  its  success  had  been  com- 
pletely dispelled;  that  the  College  is  now  in  a  higher 
sense  than  it  ever  was  before,  a  place  of  study,  and 


320        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

that  a  higher  tone  of  sentiment  has  been  imparted  to 
the  young  men. 

I  have  to  mention  as  one  of  the  most  important 
measures  of  the  year,  the  resolutions  of  the  Faculty 
regulating  the  stands  of  the  students,  passed  October 
30.  I  give  them  entire  : 

1.  Resolved,  That  the  standing  of  each  student  shall 
be  recorded  by  the  Secretary,  and  sent  in  a  Circular  to 
the  parent  or  guardian. 

2.  That  this  standing  be  made  up  by  the  Secretary 
reducing  the  examination  marks  to  a  fraction,  and 
multiplying  this  by  the  average  value  of  the  recita- 
tions, in  which  nine  is  the  maximum. 

3.  That  when  the  standing  is  below  1.25  in  any  de- 
partment, the  student  shall  be  noted  and  re-examined. 

4.  That  if  any  student  fails  to   be   sustained  in 
a  majority  of  the  departments  in  which  he  may  be 
examined,  he  shall  not  be  permitted  to  go  on  with  his 
class. 

5.  That  every  one  whose  joint  average  on  all  his 
examinations  shall  reach  six,  shall  be  published  as  meri- 
torious, the  names  being  arranged  in  alphabetical  order. 

6.  That  the  examination  of  all  the  classes  after  that 
of  the  present  Senior  Class  shall  be  continued  only  two 
hours. 

7.  That  the  Faculty  will  give  certificates  of  the 
standing  and  conduct  of  any  of  the  graduates^  dividing 
them  into  three  classes,  No.  1,  No.  2,  No.  3,  according 
as  they  are  excellent,  fair,  or  inferior. 

The  students  are  expected  to  pay  particular  atten- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        321 

tion  to  spelling  and  grammar,  as  mistakes  in  these 
will  have  an  influence  upon  their  stands. 

The  voluntary  testimony  contained  in  the  reports 
of  the  Professors,  in  favor  of  the  good  order  and  study 
of  the  College,  marks  the  year  1854  as  one  of  the  most 
brilliant  in  its  history.  Professor  Lieber  remarks, 
"that  the  conduct  of  the  students  in  his  lecture  room 
has  been  unexceptionable,  and  that  the  friendliest 
intercourse  between  himself  and  his  classes  has  never 
been  disturbed."  Of  the  Sophomore  and  Junior  Classes 
he  speaks  in  terms  of  praise,  in  which  he  had  not  in- 
dulged towards  any  previous  classes  in  the  College. 
Of  the  remaining  classes  he  remarks,  that  a  number 
of  the  members  of  the  Freshman  show  a  spirit  of  study 
similar  to  that  which  prevails  in  the  Sophomore  and 
Junior,  and  of  the  Senior  he  testifies  that  a  part  has 
studied  with  much  ardor  and  profit.  "  It  affords  me 
pleasure,"  says  Professor  Pelham,  "to  be  able  to  state 
that  the  deportment  of  the  several  classes  has  been 
entirely  unexceptionable,  and  their  application  to 
study  in  the  highest  degree  gratifying."  Professor 
Brumby  bears  witness,  that  "  the  deportment  and  pro- 
ficiency of  the  classes  have  been  entirely  satisfactory ;" 
and  Professor  LaBorde  remarks,  that  "for  the  last 
year  we  have  had  an  amount  of  study  which  I  have 
never  seen  equalled,  and  the  elevated  moral  sentiment 
which  distinguishes  the  students,  is  not  only  gratifying 
to  the  Faculty,  but  must  give  joy  to  every  true  lover 
of  our  State,  and  her  cherished  Institution."  The 
Catalogue  gives  190  students.  November  29,  Dr. 
Thorn  well  tendered  his  resignation  of  the  Presidency, 
and  it  was  accepted,  to  take  effect  at  the  end  of  a 


322        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

year.  February  15,  1855,  an  occasional  meeting  of 
the  Board  was  held,  at  the  call  of  the  President  of  the 
College.  The  occasion  of  the  assembling  was  a  fire 
which  destroyed  the  east  wing  and  the  centre  build- 
ing of  Kutledge  College  on  the  26th  of  January 
past.  This  was  the  second  fire  which  had  occurred 
within  a  few  years;  the  first  having  destroyed  the 
west  wing  of  DeSaussure  College.  This,  however, 
was  far  more  calamitous.  The  western  wing  of 
Rutledge,  though  not  consumed,  was  so  injured, 
and  in  such  a  dilapidated  condition,  that  it  became 
necessary  to  re-construct  it.  To  say  nothing  of  the 
destruction  of  a  large  amount  of  property,  the  suspen- 
sion of  a  portion  of  the  College  exercises,  and  the 
inconvenience  to  which  a  large  number  of  students 
was  subjected,  there  was  another  loss  which  appealed  to 
the  heart's  warmest  affections,  and  for  which  no  amount 
of  money  could  afford  adequate  compensation.  I  mean 
the  loss  of  the  Chapel.  It  is  believed  that  the  fire 
originated  in  a  spark  lodged  in  the  blinds  of  the 
cupola,  which  was  blown  into  a  flame  by  the  high 
winds  which  prevailed  at  the  time.  How  many 
sacred  associations  gather  around  that  old  Chapel! 
It  was  a  link  which  connected  the  present  with  the 
past;  a  monument  which,  in  language  stronger  even 
than  words,  told  of  the  great  men  who  once  lived,  and 
worshipped  at  its  shrine.  Cold,  indeed,  must  have  been 
that  heart  which  could  have  looked  unmoved  upon  the 
spectacle.  Memory,  that  strange  faculty  which  re- 
produces the  scenes  of  the  past,  and  gives  to  them  all 
the  vividness  of  a  present  reality,  and  which,  alas ! 
with  too  much  faithfulness,  summons  to  our  presence 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.         323 

even  the  things  of  former  days  which  startle  and 
alarm  us,  seemed  here  only  to  give  us  communion 
with  the  mighty  dead,  and  bring  up  the  sweet 
remembrance  of  shining  virtues  and  surpassing  ex- 
cellence. How  dear  was  the  old  Chapel  to  every 
graduate  of  the  College !  In  its  sacred  desk  ministered 
a  Maxcy,  an  Elliott,  and  a  Thornwell ;  and  for  many 
long  years  a  Henry,  a  Barnwell  a  Preston,  and  a  Lieber, 
graced  it  by  their  presence.  Upon  its  stage  stood  a 
Harper,  a  Legare,  a  McDuffie,  a  Butler,  an  Evans  and 
an  Earle,  burning  with  youthful  .ardor,  and,  like  the 
mettled  courser,  impatient  to  start  upon  that  race 
wliere  immortal  honors  are  to  be  won.  Never  shall 
I  forget  the  melancholy  spectacle  of  the  old  building 
in  flames,  the  strenuous  efforts  to  save  it,  and  the 
inexpressible  look  of  sadness  in  the  faces  of  all  when 
hope  departed.  How  eagerly  was  every  eye  directed 
as  it  melted  away  piece  by  piece,  and  how  anxious 
was  that  look  into  the  Hall  when  the  atmosphere  was 
but  one  blaze  of  fire,  that  perchance  another  and  yet 
another  glimpse  might  be  got  of  the  old  familiar  places 
which  in  a  few  moments  were  to  disappear  forever. 
With  the  roof  in  a  flame,  and  momentarily  expected 
to  fall,  persons  were  to  be  seen  rushing  into  it,  that 
they  might  snatch  something  by  way  of  memorial 
from  the  devouring  element.  When  all  efforts  ceased, 
and  the  dear  old  Chapel  was  abandoned  to  its  fate, 
men  looked  as  if  there  was  a  present  death,  and 
sorrowed  as  if  the  chosen  companion  of  their  life,  the 
object  of  their  tenderest  affections,  was  removed  forever 
from  their  sight. 

It  was  an  occasion  on  which  the  Trustees  felt  that 


324        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

they  were  compelled  to  assume  responsibility,  and 
accordingly  it  was  resolved  that  a  Committee  be 
appointed  to  contract  for  the  re-building  of  the  burnt 
wing  and  Chapel,  and  for  taking  down  and  re-build- 
ing the  western  wing  of  Rutledge  College,  if  such 
contract  can  be  made  on  reasonable  terms,  referring 
the  contractors  to  the  future  action  of  the  Legislature 
for  compensation.  The  Semi- Annual  Meeting  of  the 
Board  took  place  May  9.  The  President  made  a  flat- 
tering report  of  the  state  of  the  College.  The  Pro- 
fessors had  been  very  punctual  and  exact  in  all 
the  duties  of  the  lecture-room,  and  there  had  been 
no  outbreaks,  no  riots,  no  tumultuary  disturbance^, 
no  painful  demonstrations  of  obstinate  self-will  among 
the  students.  The  stated  annual  meeting  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  was  held  November  28.  The 
President  of  the  College  submitted  his  report — the  last 
which  he  was  to  make.  Some  irregularities  occurred 
at  the  close  of  the  last  session,  during  the  absence 
of  the  President.  Six  of  the  young  men  took 
occasion  to  revive  the  custom  of  riding  in  the  Campus 
with  trumpets  and  torches.  It  was  repeated  upon  the 
return  of  the  President.  They  rode  round  the  Campus 
twice,  and  then  retired,  and  everything  was  perfectly 
quiet.  The  students,  perhaps  to  a  man,  left  their 
rooms  on  the  second  occasion,  and  assembled  in 
groups  in  various  parts  of  the  Campus.  It  so  hap- 
pened that  only  one  or  two  wings  were  visited,  and  the 
absentees  marked.  The  Faculty  determined  to  sum- 
mon the  reported  absentees,  and  put  them  upon  their 
exculpation.  When  the  first  set  appeared  they  refused 
to  answer,  and  it  was  ascertained  that  all  would  take 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        325 

the  same  position.  The  whole  College  was  in  a  state 
of  the  highest  excitement,  and  seemed  ripe  for  gene- 
ral rebellion.  If  the  reader  feels  astonishment,  and 
asks  for  an  explanation,  I  have  to  reply  that  I  can 
give  none  which  will  be  accepted  as  satisfactory.  The 
passions  of  young  men  are  subject  to  occasional  explo- 
sions, which  are  more  sudden  even  than  a  volcanic  erup- 
tion, as  this  latter  generally  gives  some  premonition.  In 
this  case,  though  unattended  with  warning,  the  rebel- 
lion cannot  justly  be  said  to  have  been  conceived  in  a 
spirit  of  pure  wantonness  and  lawlessness,  as  they  had 
at  least  some  pretext  for  the  proceeding.  One  ground 
was  that  the  first  disorder,  that  which  was  committed 
in  the  absence  of  the  President,  was  ignored  by  the 
Faculty,  and  that  it  was  an  odious  discrimination  to 
select  the  rioters  of  the  second  night  only  as  the 
victims  of  punishment.  The  reply  to  this  is,  that  it 
was  a  matter  to  be  determined  exclusively  by  the 
judgment  of  the  Faculty.  They  were  responsible  to 
their  own  consciences,  and  to  the  Trustees,  and  it  was 
the  simple  duty  of  the  students  to  submit  in  silence. 
It  is  not  to  be  believed  that  the  Faculty  would  decline 
any  investigation  without  sufficient  reason,  and  I  am 
sure  that  the  students  are  not  clothed  with  the  impor- 
tant function  of  seeing  that  the  laws  are  faithfully 
executed.  Another  ground  was,  that  all  the  tenements 
were  not  visited,  and  that  the  Faculty  had  no  right  to 
call  up  the  absentees  from  a  single  wing.  The  answer 
to  this  is,  that  they  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  par- 
ticular reasons  which  prevented  the  officers  from 
visiting  their  respective  tenements.  Some  of  them 
may  have  been  absent  from  the  walls,  others  may  have 


326        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

been  sick,  and  others  again  may  have  declined  after 
due  consideration ;  but  whether  from  one  or  all  of 
these  causes,  the  conclusion  is  the  same,  that  it  is  not 
a  matter  for  the  decision  of  the  young  men.  The  plain 
matter  of  fact  was,  that  during  the  prevalence  of  a  riot, 
certain  Professors  visited  the  rooms  of  which  they  had 
charge,  and  reported  the  absentees.  There  could  be  no 
question  about  the  law ;  its  language  could  not  be 
misinterpreted.  It  was  coeval  with  the  foundation 
of  the  College,  had  been  steadily  enforced  whenever 
the  necessity  demanded,  and  its  authority  was  now 
positively  denied.  This  was  the  great  issue ;  it  was 
this  which  made  the  occasion  one  of  transcendant 
importance.  The  position  taken  by  the  students  was, 
to  all  intents  and  purposes,  a  declaration  that  in  case 
of  general  disturbance  the  law  would  be  resisted  unless 
all  who  participated  were  summoned  before  the 
Faculty  ;  that  in  such  cases  the  individual  reports  of 
Professors  would  not  be  respected,  and,  as  a  neces- 
sary consequence,  that  the  students  themselves  were 
to  be  the  judges  of  the  times  and  occasions  for  its 
enforcement.  The  Faculty  conceived  that  such  con- 
cessions would  be  fatal  to  the  government  of  the  Col- 
lege, and  they  determined  to  maintain  the  supremacy 
of  the  law.  Could  they  recede  ?  This  would  be  but  * 
to  cover  their  authority  with  contempt.  They  could 
not  stand  still.  What,  then,  was  to  be  done?  The 
students  were  assembled  in  the  Campus,  and  tinder  the 
influence  of  the  wildest  excitement.  Under  these 
circumstances,  the  President  appeared  among  them, 
and  I  leave  him  to  tell  the  story  in  his  official  report : 
"I  pointed  out  to  them  the  consequences  of  such  a 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        327 

course,  and  to  my  great  gratification  the  College 
almost  instantly  acquiesced  in  the  supremacy  of  the 
laws,  and  the  young  men  who  had  refused  to  answer 
retraced  their  steps.  The  temper  displayed  at  the 
close  atoned  in  my  eyes  for  the  disorders  that  had 
occurred."  Thus  a  most  important  principle  was 
saved,  and  a  gathering  storm,  ready  to  burst  with 
terrific  fury,  was  dissipated  into  thin  air. 

The  President  is  able  to  congratulate  the  Board  upon 
the  prosperous  condition  of  the  College.  "  The  part  of 
the  session,"  says  he,  "  extending  from  October  to  the 
present  time,  has  been  remarkable  beyond  all  former 
example,  for  diligent  application  to  study,  regularity 
of  deportment,  and  general  proficiency.  The  rising 
examinations,  which  are  now  on  the  point  of  being 
finished,  have  been  eminently  satisfactory,  and  the 
term  is  about  to  close  without  a  single  case  of  dis- 
cipline, or  a  single  instance  of  disorder."  What  a 
beautiful  termination  of  his  labors  !  What  a  striking 
proof  of  the  eminent  ability  which  marked  his  admin- 
istration ;  of  the  fidelity  with  which  he  discharged  the 
duties  of  the  important  trust  which  had  been  confided 
to  him !  Well  do  I  remember  the  sorrow  with  which 
all  looked  to  that  separation  which  was  now  to  take 
place.  The  College  was  in  the  best  possible  condition; 
never  did  it  enjoy  a  larger  measure  of  the  public  con- 
fidence. December  4,  Professor  C.  F.  M'Cay  was 
elected  President  of  the  College.  December  5,  Dr. 
Lieber  gave  notice  of  the  resignation  of  his  Professor- 
ship. The  duties  of  the  Professorship  made  vacant 
by  the  retirement  of  Dr.  Thorn  well,  under  a  resolution 
of  the  Board,  were  assigned  by  the  Faculty  to  Professor 


328        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Reynolds.  The  Catalogue  for  the  year  gives  one  hun- 
dred and  ninety-five  students.  The  course  of  studies 
underwent  no  very  important  modification  during 
Dr.  Thornwell's  administration,  except  in  the  Greek 
department.  When  he  succeeded  to  the  Presidency, 
six  books  only  of  the  Iliad  of  Homer  were  required 
for  admission  to  the  Freshman  Class;  but  under  his 
advice,  with  the  hearty  co-operation  of  the  excellent 
and  learned  Professor  of  Greek,  Dr.  Henry,  the  Board 
increased  the  requisition  to  ten. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

James  H.  Thornwell  was  born  in  Marlborough 
District,  South  Carolina,  near  Society  Hill,  in  the 
Welsh  Neck,  December  9,  1812.  The  first  school  to 
which  he  was  sent  was  taught  by  a  Mr.  Smith,  who 
was  a  good  teacher;  the  second  by  Peter  Mclntyre,  a 
first  rate  classical  teacher,  who  grounded  him  in  Latin 
and  Greek.  He  was  now  sent  to  Mr.  Bobbins,  a 
lawyer,  who,  in  connection  with  General  Samuel  W. 
Gillespie  and  James  Gillespie,  gave  him  his  education. 
His  last  academic  instruction  was  received  in  the 
Cheraw  Academy,  conducted  by  Dr.  Graham  and  Mr. 
Bowman,  and  there  he  was  prepared  for  College. 
January  4,  1830,  he  was  admitted  a  member  of  the 
Junior  Class,  and  at  the  Commencement  of  1831 
graduated  with  the  highest  honors.  October,  1834,  he 
was  licensed  to  preach,  and  in  May,  1835,  was  ordained 
Pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  at  Lancaster  Court 
House,  and  immediately  after  installed  Pastor  of  the 
Waxhaws  and  Six  Mile  Creek  Churches.  December 
6,  1837,  he  was  elected  Professor  in  the  College  to  fill 
the  vacancy  occasioned  by  the  death  of  Henry  Junius 
Nott.  This  Professorship  embraced  Logic  and  Criti- 
cism, and  in  a  short  time  the  instruction  in  Meta- 
physics was  devolved  upon  him.  May  8,  1839,  he 
gave  notice  of  resignation,  to  take  effect  on  the  1st  of 
January  succeeding,  for  the  purpose  of  occupying  the 
pulpit  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  Columbia. 


330        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

October,  1839,  he  was  elected  Pastor  of  that  Church, 
and  installed  January  1, 1840.  Upon  Professor  Elliott's 
resignation  of  the  chair  of  Sacred  Literature  and 
Evidences  of  Christianity,  and  his  acceptance  of  the 
Episcopate  of  Georgia,  he  was  put  in  nomination 
for  the  vacancy,  and  December  2,  1840,  unanimously 
elected.  He  entered  upon  his  duties  at  the  open- 
ing of  the  year  1841,  but  in  consequence  of  serious 
illness,  was  compelled  to  leave  his  situation  tempo- 
rarily, and  embark  for  Europe.  He  returned  in  the 
Fall  in  improved  health,  and  resumed  the  duties  of 
his  Chair.  May  7,  1851,  he  tendered  his  resigna- 
tion, having  received  a  call  from  the  Presbytery  of 
Charleston  to  become  the  Pastor  of  Glebe  Street 
Church.  It  was  accepted,  and  he  was  allowed  to 
terminate  his  connection  with  the  College  on  the  15th 
instant.  He  repaired  immediately  to  Charleston,  and 
entered  upon  his  charge.  At  the  November  meeting 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  Mr.  Preston  resigned  the 
Presidency,  and  December  2,  Dr.  Thornwell  was 
elected  President,  and  entered  upon  his  duties  January 
7,  1852.  November  29, 1854,  he  tendered  his  resigna- 
tion of  the  Presidency,  with  the  request  that  it  take 
effect  on  the  1st  day  of  January  succeeding.  The 
Board  resolved  that  his  letter  of  resignation  should  be 
considered  merely  as  notice  of  his  intention  to  resign 
at  the  end  of  a  year.  November  28,  1855,  he  sub- 
mitted his  last  report  as  President  of  the  College,  and 
December  4,  Professor  M'Cay  was  elected  his  suc- 
cessor. He  left  the  College  to  fill  the  Chair  of 
Theology  in  the  Theological  Seminary  at  Columbia, 
to  which  he  was  elected  by  the  Synod  of  Georgia,  at 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        331 

the  recommendation  and  advice  of  the  Synod  of  South 
Carolina.  Shortly  after  his  election  to  a  Professorship 
in  the  Seminary,  he  was  elected  Pastor  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church  in  Columbia,  and  in  these  two  important 
fields  of  usefulness  he  is  now  employing  all  his  time 
and  labor. 

It  is  now  in  order  for  me  to  speak  of  Dr.  Thornwell 
as  an  Instructor  in  the  College.  It  will  be  seen  that 
he  wanted  a  few  days  of  being  twenty-five  years  old 
when  he  was  elected  to  a  Professorship.  When  a 
student,  he  made  an  extraordinary  impression  upon 
the  Faculty.  He  was  particularly  a  favorite  with 
Cooper  and  Henry,  and  struck  by  his  genius  and 
attainments,  they  predicted  with  confidence  his  future 
distinction.  As  soon  as  he  entered  upon  his  duties  as 
Professor,  all  felt  that  the  Faculty  had  received  a 
most  valuable  accession.  The  character  of  his  in- 
tellect, his  scholarly  tastes,  his  rare  learning  for  one 
of  his  years,  his  ardor,  his  enthusiasm,  his  insatiable 
thirst  for  knowledge,  his  talent  for  easy  communica- 
tion, all  this  pointed  to  a  College  as  a  most  becoming 
theatre  for  his  exertion.  As  a  teacher,  few,  if  any, 
have  equalled,  certainly  none  have  surpassed  him. 
Never  was  there  in  our  walls  a  clearer  head,  a  more 
acute  mind.  Always  master  of  his  subject,  he  was 
ever  prepared  to  disentangle  it  of  the  rubbish  with 
which  it  was  encumbered,  and,  seizing  upon  its  main 
points,  to  press  them  with  a  power  and  earnestness 
which  were  sure  to  make  an  impression.  The  most 
complex  problems,  the  most  abstract  questions  fur- 
nished the  occasions  for  the  display  of  his  highest 
powers.  He  luxuriated  in  the  profound,  and  dwelt  with 


332        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

delight  upon  subjects,  which  by  the  many  are  regarded 
as  incomprehensible.  His  mind  was  ever  in  search  of 
law  and  principle ;  errors,  like  straws,  he  knew,  floated 
upon  the  surface,  and  truth,  like  the  pearl,  was  only  to  be 
found  below.  Dr.  Thornwell  first  filled  the  Professor- 
ship of  Belles  Lettres  and  Criticism,  and  though  none 
could  witness  his  teachings  without  perceiving  the 
genius  and  ability  for  which  he  is  remarkable,  yet  the 
department  was  not  congenial  to  his  tastes,  and  the 
highest  proofs  of  his  powers  are  to  be  sought  elsewhere. 
And  here  I  may  be  permitted  to  say,  that  he  has  but 
little  appreciation  of  the  beautiful,  whether  in  nature 
or  art.  He  has  his  taste,  but  it  has  no  great  sympathy 
with  the  common  standard  of  the  world.  He  is 
essentially  a  man  of  truth,  and  though  none  is  more 
addicted  to  sober,  philosophical  speculation,  still  he  is 
always  in  search  of  the  real.  He  will  accept  no  ideal, 
he  will  rest  upon  no  counterfeit.  He  wants  the  thing 
itself.  He  revolts  at  the  imaginative,  the  fictitious, 
the  mere  pictorial  illustration,  the  imitative,  and  in- 
stinctively turns  away  from  what  Scott  calls,  "forging 
the  handwriting  of  nature."  Of  the  world  of  fancy — a 
world  redolent  with  a  beauty  which  nature  in  all  her 
prodigality  does  not  exhibit,  where 

"All  that  is  most  beauteous — imaged  there 
In  happier  beauty,  more  pellucid  streams, 
An  ampler  ether,  a  diviner  air, 
And  fields  invested  with  purpureal  gleams," 

he  knows  but  little.  His  mind  is  logical,  argumenta- 
tive, metaphysical,  and  it  is  in  this  field  of  exertion 
that  his  genius  has  reaped  its  highest  rewards.  He 
has  a  love  for  ancient  thought  and  speculation 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        333 

amounting  almost  to  reverence,  and  his  chosen  com- 
panionship is  with  his  great  masters,  Plato  and  Aris- 
totle, with  whom  he  wanders,  as  Milton  styles  it,  in 
"the  shady  spaces  of  philosophy."  The  most  inter- 
esting aspect,  therefore,  in  which  he  is  to  be  regarded 
as  an  Instructor,  is  in  the  department  of  Logic,  and 
the  Metaphysical  and  Moral  Sciences.  I  think  it  is 
not  saying  too  much  to  add,  that  never  was  the 
instruction  in  those  branches  of  knowledge  so  ably 
conducted  as  when  he  had  charge  of  them.  In  most 
youthful  minds  their  very  abstract  nature  produces  a 
degree  of  repulsiveness  which  is  not  easily  over- 
come ;  but  by  his  genius  and  learning  he  so  completely 
vindicated  their  utility  and  elevating  tendencies,  that 
they  are  now  as  favorite  pursuits  as  any  others  in  the 
College.  The  reader  is  prepared  to  anticipate  the 
particular  branches  of  learning  in  which  he  has  made 
his  principal  acquisitions.  But  I  will  proceed  now  to 
express  this  more  articulately.  That  he  should  have 
formed  opinions  of  his  own  upon  all  the  vexed  questions 
connected  with  Logic,  such  as  its  precise  nature  and 
character,  its  utility  as  a  branch  of  education,  &c.,  and 
that  he  should  have  explored  its  learning,  is  no  more 
than  was  to  be  expected.  Immense  as  is  this  litera- 
ture, he  has  mastered  it  all ;  and  from  the  time  of 
Aristotle,  to  that  of  Sir  William  Hamilton,  there  is 
no  author  of  note  with  whom  he  is  not  familiar.  He 
has  given  to  each  the  most  patient  study,  and 
thoroughly  imbued  as  he  is  with  a  love  of  philosophy 
and  speculation,  has  subjected  them  all  to  the  severe 
scrutiny  of  his  own  powers.  He  is  no  dreamy  theo- 
rist, who  has  happened  to  incorporate  a  particular  idea 
21 


334        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

in  an  educational  system;  but  he  exemplifies  in  his 
own  writings  and  discourses  the  value  of  those  studies, 
of  which  he  is  the  able  and  eloquent  exponent.  Who 
can  resist  the  power  of  his  logic,  and  who  can  extri- 
cate himself  from  his  meshes  when  he  becomes 
entangled  in  them?  Whether  it  be  the  science  or  the 
art  of  reasoning,  or  both;  whether  it  be  the  science 
which  treats  rather  of  the  laws  of  thought,  than  of 
the  laws  of  reasoning;  whether  its  domain  is  so 
exclusive  as  not  to  allow  of  the  introduction  of  meta- 
physical notions;  whether  it  is  purely  deductive,  or 
may  be  identified  with  the  inductive,  no  matter  how 
these  questions  may  be  determined,  Dr.  Thornwell  is 
entitled  to  the  proud  distinction  of  being  the  Logician 
in  our  midst. 

I  will  now  undertake,  with  all  possible  brevity,  to 
present  him  in  his  character  as  a  teacher  and  culti- 
vator of  Philosophy.  And  in  the  first  place,  I  will 
speak  of  him  as  a  Metaphysician.  He  was  the 
teacher  of  Metaphysics,  as  the  reader  is  aware,  for 
many  years,  and  what  language  can  express  the  learn- 
ing and  ability  which  he  exhibited  in  his  class-room ! 
I  would  not  detract  in  the  least  from  the  measure  of 
praise  so  justly  due  his  distinguished  predecessors  in 
this  branch  of  instruction,  but  I  cannot  doubt  that,  in 
metaphysical  genius  and  learning  he  never  had  his 
equal  in  the  College.  Eminent  as  he  is  as  a  teacher 
and  writer,  it  is  important  to  declare  his  distinctive 
metaphysical  teachings,  and  to  define  his  position  in 
the  school  of  philosophy.  Fortunately  we  have  not 
to  lean  alone  upon  the  reports  of  his  pupils.  In  his 
review  of  Morell's  "Philosophy  of  Keligion,"  to  be 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        335 

found  in  the  Southern  Presbyterian  Review,  vol.  3, 
he  speaks  in  language  not  to  be  misunderstood.  He 
takes  his  departure  from  the  school  of  Locke;  not 
from  Locke  as  generally  considered,  but  from  him  as 
fairly  interpreted.  With  the  horrid  developments 
of  the  sensational  philosophy,  and  particularly  as 
exhibited  by  the  French  Encylopedists,  he  has 
no  sympathy.  He  is  a  Lockite  in  the  sense  that 
all  knowledge  begins  in  experience,  but  he  insists  that 
there  are  certain  conditions  which  are  essential  to 
experience,  and  under  which  alone  it  becomes  avail- 
able. He  looks  with  no  favor  upon  the  pure  Sensation- 
alist, who  regards  knowledge  as  merely  mechanical. 
The  province  of  philosophy  is  to  know,  and  the  question 
to  be  determined  is,  what  are  we  to  know?  This  im- 
plies something  beyond  the  mechanical.  The  problem 
demands  for  its  solution  a  thinking  subject,  an 
intelligence,  as  a  necessary  condition  to  knowledge. 
He  believes  in  the  existence  of  certain  primary  truths, 
fundamental  beliefs,  which  are  involved  in  the  very 
structure  of  the  mind.  "  They  are  certain  necessities 
of  thinking;  but  developed  in  experience,  and  gene- 
ralized into  abstract  statements,  they  are  original  and 
elementary  cognitions,  the  foundation  and  criterion  of 
all  knowledge.  Being  in  the  mind — a  part  of  its  very 
structure — they  are  not  the  products  of  experience." 
In  his  philosophy,  therefore,  he  sympathises  with  the 
school  of  Reid,  and  Stewart,  and  its  ablest  and  most 
learned  exponent,  Sir  William  Hamilton.  He  repu- 
diates the  school  of  the  extreme  Sensationalist,  the 
mechanical  Metaphysician,  and  occupying  a  kind  of 
middle  ground,  advocating  a  species  of  eclecticism, 


336        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

combines  the  philosophy  of  original  beliefs  with 
the  philosophy  of  experience.  He  thus  escapes  that 
degrading  dogma  which  would  make  the  mind  a  mere 
machine;  rob  it  of  inherent  powers  and  energies,  and 
sink  it  to  the  ignoble  condition  of  a  mere  passive 
recipient.  This  is  a  fundamental  distinction  in  the 
schools  of  philosophy.  As  the  scheme  of  Sensation- 
alism, pushed  to  its  extreme  consequences,  terminates 
in  Materialism,  and  even  Atheism,  so  likewise  the 
scheme  of  primary  and  universal  principles,  in  its  full 
development,  elevates  the  reason  to  a  supremacy  to 
which  it  is  not  entitled,  makes  it  competent  "  to  con- 
duct us  to  the  fountain  of  existence,  and  solve  all  the 
mysteries  of  the  universe."  He  is  neither  a  disciple, 
then,  of  the  school  of  Rationalism  or  Experience,  as 
this  latter  school  is  commonly  interpreted.  It  cannot 
be  disguised,  however,  that  he  indulges  the  greater 
tolerance  towards  the  latter  school,  as  explained  and 
qualified  by  himself.  He  regards  the  two  as  utterly 
opposed  in  their  whole  spirit  and  purpose.  The  one 
commends  itself  by  its  modesty  and  humility,  while 
the  other,  with  arrogant  pretensions,  dares  to  plunge 
even  into  the  incomprehensible,  and  boldly  relying 
upon  its  own  powers,  to  grasp  at  universal  knowledge. 
He  looks  not  only  with  disfavor,  but  with  reprobation, 
upon  all  speculations  in  reference  to  abstract  being,  the 
substance  of  the  soul,  efficient  causes,  and  similar  topics, 
and  teaches  that  all  knowledge  is  but  phenomenal  and 
relative.  He  repudiates  the  leading  features  of  the 
philosophy  of  Germany,  of  which  Cousin  in  France,  and 
Morell  in  England,  are  conspicuous  and  eloquent  ex- 
pounders, and  points  to  Hamilton,  the  prince  of  modern 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        337 

philosophers,  who,  in  his  edition  of  Keid,  has  walked  in 
the  footsteps  of  his  illustrious  predecessor,  and  con- 
ceived aright  the  nature  and  extent  of  human  know- 
ledge, and  the  legitimate  province  of  philosophy. 
And  here  I  may  be  permitted  to  introduce  his 
compliment  to  Hamilton.  Not  stopping  to  look  for 
confirmation  of  his  opinions  in  the  writings  of  other 
philosophers,  who  are  imperfectly  acquainted  with 
the  modern  speculations  of  Continental  Europe,  he 
remarks  that,  "we  choose  rather  to  refer  to  one  who 
is  master  of  them  all — who,  in  depth  and  acuteness 
is  a  rival  of  Aristotle ;  in  immensity  of  learning,  a 
match  for  Leibnitz;  and  in  comprehensiveness  of 
thought  an  equal  to  Bacon.  We  allude  to  Sir  William 
Hamilton.  His  work  on  Keid  has  filled  us  with 
amazement  at  the  prodigious  extent  and  critical 
accuracy  of  his  reading.  The  whole  circle  of  the 
ancient  classics,  poets,  philosophers  and  orators ;  the 
entire  compass  of  Christian  Literature,  Eastern  and 
Western,  from  Justin  to  Luther,  including  the  angry  con- 
troversies and  the  endless  disputes  of  the  Fathers  and 
Schoolmen;  the  great  works  of  the  Reformation^  and 
the  prolific  productions  of  England,  Scotland,  Germany 
and  France,  from  the  period  of  the  Eeformers  until 
now,  all  seem  to  be  as  familiar  to  his  mind  as  the  alpha- 
bet to  other  men ;  and  what  is  more  remarkable,  this 
ponderous  mass  of  learning  is  no  incumbrance ;  he 
has  not  only  swallowed  down,  but  digested  libraries ; 
and  while  he  carries — it  is  hardly  extravagant  to  say 
— all  the  thoughts  of  other  men  in  his  head,  he  has 
an  immense  multitude  besides,  precious  as  any  he  has 
collected,  which  none  have  ever  had  before  him,  and 


338        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

for  which  the  world  will  ever  hold  him  in  grateful 
remembrance."  It  is  not  my  purpose  to  follow  Dr. 
Thornwell,  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  his 
philosophical  speculations.  On  all  the  vexed  ques- 
tions which  have  divided  the  Schools,  he  has  bestowed 
the  largest  amount  of  thought  and  reflection.  He 
takes  nothing  at  second  hand,  but,  subjecting  every 
thing  to  the  test  of  his  own  examination,  has  formed 
positive  conclusions  for  himself.  Master  of  all  the 
learning  of  philosophy,  familiar  with  nil  its  various 
systems,  his  mind  has  rested  upon  every  dogma,  passed 
a  positive  judgment,  and  excogitated  a  scheme  of  its 
own.  And  it  is  especially  on  these  vexed  questions 
that  he  loves  to  dwell.  No  poet  ever  luxuriated  more 
in  the  realms  of  fancy,  and  derived  a  higher  pleasure 
from  the  workings  of  the  imagination,  than  he  does 
when  pondering  the  philosophy  of  the  conditioned,  the 
subjective  and  objective  origin  of  our  cognitions,  or  the 
nature  of  logical  and  intuitional  consciousness.  What- 
ever may  be  the  distaste  for  such  speculations,  no  one 
can  see  him  thus  absorbed  without  being  impressed 
by  Ms  lofty  spirit  of  devotion,  and  feeling  to  some 
extent  at  least,  the  force  of  that  genius  and  almost 
superhuman  power  by  which  he  is  urged  and  stimu- 
lated to  his  high  exertion.  My  limits  will  not  allow  me 
to  dwell  longer  upon  him  as  a  metaphysician.  Need 
I  express  the  opinion  that  he  has  no  superior  in  this 
respect  within  the  limits  of  our  wide-spread  country  ? 
Nay,  more — where  is  his  equal?  With  a  mind 
marked  by  marvellous  acuteness,  a  quickness  of  appre- 
hension and  rapidity  of  thought  never  surpassed,  a 
power  of  analysis  which,  as  if  by  the  touch  of  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.         339 

magician,  resolves  the  most  complex  object  into  its 
simple  elements,  a  taste  for  generalization  which 
knows  no  limit,  a  learning  which  has  explored  the 
whole  field  of  philosophical  speculation — what  is 
wanting  in  this  wondrous  combination  of  powers  to 
constitute  the  highest  order  of  intellect,  and  to  fit  the 
possessor  for  the  most  enviable  position  among  the 
cultivators  of  mental  philosophy  ? 

But  it  is  as  a  moral  teacher  that  he  has  made,  if 
possible,  the  most  profound  impression.  Commencing 
with  the  great  masters  of  ancient  times,  he  has  digested 
every  ethical  system,  every  important  moral  specula- 
tion of  every  nation  and  period.  Here  he  long  taught 
in  the  department  of  the  Evidences  of  Christianity  and 
Sacred  Literature.  His  text-books  were  Paley's  Evi- 
dences, and  Moral  Philosophy,  and  Butler's  Analogy. 
Of  the  Evidences  he  thought  well,  and  was  only  con- 
cerned in  enforcing  and  illustrating  its  arguments  and 
teachings.  Not  so,  however,  with  the  "Moral  Phi- 
losophy" of  this  celebrated  author.  He  was  charmed 
with  his  method,  his  order,  the  unrivalled  perspicuity 
of  his  style,  and  believed  that  of  all  men,  perhaps 
he  had  the  best  conception  of  a  text-book.  But  the 
work  served  no  other  purpose  than  to  create  an 
occasion  for  ethical  discussion,  and  the  expression  of 
his  own  peculiar  views.  Never  was  there  a  sterner 
opponent  of  the  system  of  which  Paley  is  the  ex- 
pounder. In  his  published  critique  which  was  in  the 
hands  of  his  class,  and  in  his  "  Discourses  on  Truth," 
he  has  uttered  language  of  strongest  condemnation. 
Having  a  holy  horror  for  that  philosophy  which  would 
construct  a  system  of  morals  upon  a  basis  of  utility, 


340        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

he  has  in  his  assaults  upon  it  exhibited  an  unwonted 
vehemence,  and,  perhaps,  in  some  instances,  done 
injustice  to  individuals.  The  system  has  had  its  day: 
few  will  be  found  now  to  defend  it,  and  it  may 
be  regarded  as  an  exploded  dogma  of  former  times. 
In  his  review  of  Paley,  however,  may  be  found  the 
most  thorough  analysis  of  the  work,  and  the  most 
complete  refutation  of  the  system  itself.  What,  then, 
is  his  system  of  moral  philosophy  ?  It  may  be  clearly 
seen  in  the  ethical  principles  of  Butler,  whose  works 
he  regards  as  second  only  to  the  Bible.  Discarding 
the  principle  of  utility,  expediency,  consequences  or 
tendencies,  or  by  what  other  name  it  may  be  called, 
he  finds  a  more  solid,  enduring,  and  certain  basis. 
He  insists  that  there  are  primitive  cognitions  of 
morality,  "which  exist  in  the  first  instance  as  necessi- 
ties or  laws  of  conscience,  and  are  evolved  into  distinct 
propositions  by  a  process  of  reflection.  Experience 
furnishes  the  occasions  on  which  they  are  developed, 
and  when  developed  they  become  the  standard  of  all 
moral  truth.  They  stand  in  the  same  relation  to  the 
moral  faculty,  in  which  the  laws  of  thought  stand  to 
the  faculty  of  speculative  truth."  "  Conscience  gives 
us  the  elements,  thought  and  reflection  the  combina- 
tion and  uses  of  these  elements.  Conscience  gives  us 
implicitly,  the  understanding  explicitly,  the  funda- 
mental laws  of  morality."  The  rules  of  right  then, 
of  moral  rectitude,  exist  in  the  conscience  in  an 
undeveloped  state.  The  condition  is  but  germinal,  and 
for  their  growth  and  development,  culture  and  experi- 
ence are  necessary.  He  insists  that  the  primary  laws  of 
morality  are  essentially  the  same  in  all  men,  and  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        341 

difference  of  manifestation,  the  monstrous  discrepances 
are  due  to  errors  of  the  understanding.  It  is  not  that 
there  is  no  conscience,  it  is  not  that  it  has  no  specific 
nature  with  peculiar  laws  which  belong  to  itself,  but 
because  these  laws  are  misinterpreted  and  misapplied. 
It  sits  enthroned  in  all  its  grandeur  and  majesty,  and 
utters  its  voice  in  every  bosom.  Its  dominion  is 
universal;  it  may  claim  authority  over  all  other 
principles  of  action.  I  am  reminded  of  the  striking 
remark  of  Bishop  Butler,  "had  it  strength  as  it  has 
right,  it  would  govern  the  world."  What  a  potentate ! 
Who  is  free  from  its  control,  and  when  did  it  relax  its 
grasp,  or  surrender  its  authority!  Sir  James  Mack- 
intosh remarks,  that  "its  title  is  not  impaired  by  any 
number  of  defeats;  for  every  defeat  necessarily  dis- 
poses the  disinterested  and  dispassionate  bystander  to 
wish  that  its  force  were  strengthened;  and  though  it 
may  be  doubted  whether  consistently  with  the  present 
constitution  of  human  nature,  it  could  be  so  invigo- 
rated as  to  be  the  only  motive  to  action,  yet  every 
such  bystander  rejoices  at  any  accession  to  its  force, 
and  would  own  that  man  becomes  happier,  more 
excellent,  more  estimable,  more  venerable  as  it  acquires 
power."  Enforcing  then,  as  Dr.  Thornwell  does,  the 
doctrine  of  an  original  approving  and  disapproving 
faculty,  which  we  call  the  conscience,  to  it  he  traces 
the  genesis  of  all  our  moral  sentiments  and  emotions. 
All  theories  which  would  make  it  derivative  and 
secondary,  he  rejects  as  degrading  to  its  nature,  as 
fruitful  in  mischief,  and  as  mere  expedients  to  account 
for  anomalies  and  irregularities  which  admit  of  far 
more  reasonable  and  satisfactory  explanations. 


342        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

It  is  not  my  purpose  to  follow  him  in  the  details 
of  his  teachings,  or  in  the  elaborate  expositions  with 
which  he  has  favored  the  public.  My  simple  design  is 
to  indicate  his  position,  to  sketch  a  mere  outline  which 
the  intelligent  reader  can  easily  fill  up.  I  cannot  for- 
bear, however,  referring  to  a  speculation  of  Aristotle, 
concerning  "the  highest  good  of  man,"  of  which  Dr. 
Thornwell  gives  a  brief  analysis  in  his  "  Discourses  on 
Truth,"  with  the  remark,  that  "it  is  one  of  the  finest 
discussions  in  the  whole  compass  of  ancient  philoso- 
phy." He  contrasts  it  with  the  Utilitarian  scheme, 
and  declares  that  "there  is  a  tenfold  nearer  approxi- 
mation to  the  teachings  of  the  Bible  in  Aristotle,  than 
there  is  in  Paley;  more  affinity  with  the  Gospel  in 
Cicero,  than  in  the  whole  tribe  of  Utilitarians."  "  The 
fundamental  notion  of  Aristotle  is,  that  happiness 
consists  in  virtuous  energies — that  it  is  not  mere 
pleasure — not  the  gratification  which  results  from  the 
possession  of  an  object  congruous  to  our  desires.  That 
is  good  only  in  a  very  subordinate  sense  which  simply 
ministers  to  enjoyment.  The  chief  good  must  be 
something  pursued  exclusively  for  its  own  sake,  and 
never  for  the  sake  of  any  thing  else."  Dr.  Thornwell, 
in  his  commentary  remarks,  that  according  to  Aristotle, 
"happiness  is  not  something  imparted  to  the  soul 
from  without — it  springs  from  the  soul  itself — it  is 
the  very  glow  of  its  life;  and  that  this  teaching  is 
strikingly  in  accordance  with  the  doctrine  of  the 
Scriptures."  But  I  cannot  dwell  longer;  the  length 
of  this  sketch  admonishes  me  that  I  must  hasten.  He 
has  no  sympathy  with  the  philosophical  speculations 
of  Germany.  No  country  can  boast  such  scholars; 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        343 

such  an  amount  of  varied  and  recondite  erudition. 
Its  schools  and  universities  now  attract  the  world, 
and  thousands  of  all  nations  sit  daily  at  the  feet  of 
their  great  masters.  It  is  not  easy  for  language  to  con- 
vey an  adequate  idea  of  their  learning,  their  acuteness, 
their  subtle  reasonings,  and  their  daring  speculation. 
With  an  energy  and  industry  in  this  respect  surpassing 
all  other  people,  German  thought  has  taken  possession 
to  a  large  extent  of  the  thinking  mind  of  Europe,  and 
its  philosophical  systems,  whether  moral  or  metaphysi- 
cal, are  now  in  the  ascendant. 

"  From  Locke  to  Hamilton,"  says  Dr.  Thornwell, 
"  English  and  Scotch  philosophy  have  been  for  the  most 
part  a  confession  of  human  ignorance;  from  Leibnitz 
to  Hegel,  with  the  exception  of  Kant,  German  philoso- 
phy has  been  for  the  most  part  an  aspiration  to 
omniscience."  It  is,  I  conceive,  in  meeting  the  beauti- 
ful and  imposing  dogmas  of  the  modern  German 
ethics  and  theology,  that  he  has  exhibited  his  highest 
powers,  and  rendered  his  largest  service  to  the  cause 
of  Truth.  As  the  mind  is  competent  to  construct  for 
itself,  without  any  external  aid,  a  complete  system  of 
metaphysics,  so  likewise,  in  the  plenitude  of  its 
powers,  it  can  work  out  the  whole  problem  of  morals, 
and  dispensing  even  with  light  from  Heaven,  and 
special  communications  from  God  himself,  excogitate 
from  the  vasty  depths  of  its  own  being,  a  scheme  of 
religion  fair  in  all  its  proportions,  perfect  in  all  its 
developments,  suited  to  every  exigency,  meeting  every 
necessity,  and  comprehending  all  the  possible  relations 
of  an  accountable,  immortal  creature.  This  is  one  of 
the  revolting  doctrines  against  which  he  has  brought 


344        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

to  bear  all  the  powers  of  his  logic,  and  all  the  resources 
of  his  noble  intellect. 

It  cannot  be  expected  of  me  to  go  into  the  depart- 
ment of  Polemic  theology,  and  to  enumerate  even 
the  many  questions  which  are  now  eliciting  so  much 
discussion.  There  is  one,  however,  which  transcends 
all  others  in  importance,  and  as  it  has  been  debated  with 
great  ability  by  Dr.  Thorn  well,  I  must  ask  to  give  it  a 
passing  notice.  This  is  the  question  of  the  inspiration 
of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  Almost  the  entire  school  of 
German  philosophers  has  taken  ground  against  the  time- 
honored  faith,  that  revelation  is  external  and  superna- 
tural, and  that  certain  men  were  inspired  to  communi- 
cate its  truths  and  commit  them  to  writing.  This  would 
be  to  constitute  the  Scriptures  an  infallible  rule  of 
faith;  to  free  them  from  all  the  imperfections  which 
would  attach  to  them,  if  they  were  in  any  degree  of 
human  origin,  and  stamp  upon  them  the  seal  of  the 
Divine  authority.  But  this  is  not  so;  the  Bible  comes 
from  man,  and  not  from  God.  For  its  sublime  teach- 
ings we  must  look  to  nature  alone;  it  is  but  the 
inspiration  of  genius  like  that  of  Homer,  Shakspeare 
and  Milton;  and  in  "the  religious  sentiment,"  "the 
Christian  consciousness,"  or  "the  religious  intui- 
tions," is  to  be  found  the  whole  power  necessary  to 
its  production.  Under  new  and  less  offensive  names, 
the  once  promulgated  doctrine  of  Deism  that  nature 
and  reason  were  the  only  sources  of  truth,  and  that 
the  Bible  is  a  cheat,  has  been  revived.  Ventilated 
in  a  great  variety  of  forms  by  Jacobi,  Schleirmacker, 
DeWette,  Wigschieder,  Neander,  and  others,  it  still 
presents  in  all,  the  fundamental  principle  that  reve- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        345 

lation  and  inspiration  are  but  the  result  of  an  inward 
and  subjective  illumination.  According  to  McCosh, 
German  speculation  has  ended  in  Pantheism.  "The 
personality  of  the  Deity  has  been  superseded  by  blind 
law  and  development,  and  in  place  of  an  ever-present, 
ever-ruling  God,  we  have  abstractions  which  can 
never  produce  fear  on  the  part  of  the  bad,  or  love  on 
the  part  of  the  good."  Nor  are  Neander,  Tholuck, 
Coleridge  and  others,  who  have  modified  to  some 
extent  the  prevalent  teachings  of  German  philosophy, 
wholly  free  from  this  censure.  To  qualify  the  great 
doctrine  of  inspiration,  to  admit  it  in  a  restricted 
sense  only,  is  to  unsettle  its  authority,  and  to  open 
the  door  for  wild  and  heretical  speculation.  The 
Bible  cannot  be  a  rule  if  one  part  of  it  proceeds  from 
God,  and  another  from  man.  Who  in  that  case  is  to 
decide?  It  must  be  accepted  as  a  whole,  or  rejected 
altogether.  It  was  Coleridge  who  transplanted  Ger- 
man theology  in  England;  and  however  favorably  he 
may  have  impressed  the  thinking  mind  of  his  own 
country,  it  is  nevertheless,  I  conceive,  entirely  true, 
that  in  denying  the  plenary  inspiration  of  the  Bible, 
he  has  conceded  everything  to  its  opponents.  He 
has  destroyed  its  authority,  virtually  denied  the  essen- 
tial distinctions  between  inspired  and  uninspired 
writings,  and  relegated  them  all  to  the  same  common 
source.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  for  me  to  remark, 
that  Dr.  Thornwell  has  entered  his  solemn  protest 
against  all  such  philosophy;  which  in  substance  is, 
"  that  a  valid  theology  is  never  the  gift  of  Heaven, 
but  is  always  the  creature  of  the  understanding."  My 
limits  will  not  permit  me  to  give  his  argument;  my 


346        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

only  purpose  is  to  define  his  position.  In  his  review 
of  Morell  he  has  successfully  vindicated  the  proposi- 
tion, that  the  Bible,  in  each  and  every  part,  is  the 
actual  transcript  of  the  Divine  mind,  and  that  chosen 
men,  endowed  with  supernatural  powers,  and  guided 
by  the  Holy  Ghost,  were  to  proclaim  it;  that  it  is  a 
purely  objective  communication  from  God  himself; 
that  it  is  free  from  all  errors  and  defects,  as  He  had 
endowed  them  with  powers  which  do  not  belong  to 
nature,  and  thus  miraculously  constituted  them  au- 
thoritative teachers  of  his  revelation  to  others. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  aspects  in  which  Dr. 
Thornwell  is  to  be  viewed,  is  as  a  Preacher.  The 
common  consent  of  those  who  have  witnessed  his 
pulpit  efforts,  will  accord  to  him  the  most  exalted 
position.  He  must  be  judged,  however,  according  to 
a  peculiar  standard.  From  the  character  of  his  mind, 
his  sermons  must  be  logical,  argumentative  and  meta- 
physical. Always  in  search  of  a  reason,  of  principles, 
they  are  eminently  analytic  in  their  nature,  and 
addressed  to  the  understanding,  as  contradistinguished 
from  the  emotional  parts  of  our  being.  He  has  no 
arts  to  stimulate  sentiment,  or  to  arouse  the  affections. 
With  the  great  truths  of  Christianity,  he  deals  as  with 
other  truths.  His  purpose  is  to  exhibit  their  reason- 
ableness, to  prove  them,  and  by  logical  processes  to 
enforce  conviction.  In  this  respect  he  has  no  superior. 
And  there  is,  too,  an  ardor  and  vehemence  which  will 
not  fail  to  impress  the  most  indifferent.  He  exhibits 
the  warmest  feeling,  the  most  fervid  devotion,  and  it 
is  impossible  to  doubt  the  sincerity  of  his  convictions. 
In  declamation,  in  rhetoric,  in  fancy,  he  is  surpassed 


HISTORY  OP  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        347 

by  others,  but  in  closeness  of  logic,  and  power  of  argu- 
ment, I  know  not  his  equal.  His  command  of  language 
is  truly  wonderful.  His  thoughts  come  in  rapid 
succession,  and  the  words  are  always  at  hand  to  give 
them  utterance.  The  most  beautiful  order,  the  most 
perfect  system,  pervades  every  discourse.  Everything 
is  marked  by  the  closest  logical  coherence.  There  is 
nothing  out  of  place,  nothing  wanting,  nothing  super- 
fluous. His  sermons,  like  all  his  writings,  have  a 
marked  character.  His  propositions  are  distinctly  laid 
down,  his  aim  is  clearly  perceived,  and  he  speaks  in 
no  ambiguous  phrases,  no  language  of  equivocation. 
And  here  I  am  reminded  of  a  peculiarity  of  his  mind. 
When  he  speaks,  it  is  without  doubt  or  qualification. 
He  deals  not  in  the  conjectural.  "  It  is  so,  or  it  is  not 
so,"  is  his  language.  But  all  his  conclusions  are 
reached  by  patient  thought  and  careful  reflection. 
Nothing  is  done  in  haste,  and  his  dogmatic  assertions 
result  from  thorough  investigation,  and  the  confidence 
which  such  investigations  are  calculated  to  impart. 
He  is  apt  to  speak,  therefore,  as  one  who  knows,  and 
his  discourses  and  his  writings  present  him  not  so 
much  in  the  character  of  the  inquirer,  as  the  teacher 
and  master. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  such  a  man  should  have  a 
national  reputation.  In  his  particular  denomination 
there  is  perhaps  no  one  in  this  country  who  occupies 
a  more  exalted  position.  At  the  meetings  of  the  Gene- 
ral Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  the 
United  States,  no  one  has  attracted  more  attention, 
or  ex^/ted  a  higher  admiration.  In  May,  1847,  he  // 
had  the  honor  of  being  elected  Moderator. 


348        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

From  what  has  been  said  the  reader  will  naturally 
conclude  that  he  has  fixed  opinions  on  all  subjects 
of  thought  and  speculation.  Having  devoted  a 
large  portion  of  his  life  to  the  business  of  instruction, 
he  has  had  occasion  to  examine  for  himself  the  great 
question  of  education,  and  his  matured  conclusions 
are  to  be  found  particularly  in  his  letter  to  Governor 
Manning,  and  the  article  entitled  "  Barnard  on 
American  Colleges,"  published  in  the  Southern 
Quarterly  Review,  new  series,  Vol.  I,  1856.  What 
then  according  to  Dr.  Thorn  well  is  the  proper  func- 
tion of  the  College  ?  He  conceives  that  in  America 
its  true  nature  and  design  are  overlooked,  and  that 
there  is  an  attempt  to  harmonize  contradictories, 
and  to  work  out  impossibilities.  "The  American 
College  is  a  mixture  of  the  gymnasium  and  the 
University.  .  .  .  It  is  presumed  not  only  to 
have  trained  the  mind,  but  to  have  awakened  the 
spirit  of  liberal  inquiry :  to  have  given  a  taste  of 
the  secrets  of  knowledge,  and  to  have  inspired  the 
honorable  ambition  of  seeking  it  as  at  once  the 
health  and  beauty  of  the  soul.  This  is  the  key 
to  the  enormous  exactions  of  their  course  of  study ; 
the  secret  of  their  magnificent  promises  to  teach  all 
that  can  be  known.  They  undertake  to  do  what 
in  Germany  is  done  by  different  institutions,  and 
institutions  organized  upon  different  principles."  He 
would  not  "carry  on  side  by  side,  a  set  of  studies 
which  are  taught  for  the  purpose  of  awakening  the 
energy,  and  another  for  the  purpose  of  imparting 
the  matter  of  thought."  He  would  therefore  divorce 
them,  and  introduce  under  certain  conditions,  two  sepa- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        349 

rate  and  distinct  courses  in  the  College.  He  objects 
to  the  prominence  given  to  the  physical  sciences. 
"  They  may  impart  a  dexterity  analogous  to  mechanical 
skill  in  conducting  observations  and  experiments, 
but  they  never  reach  the  height,  and  dignity,  and 
intensity  of  free  thinking.  .  .  .  They  should 
not  be  made  the  meal  but  the  dessert.  They  should 
be  postponed  until  they  can  be  pursued  as  a  matter 
of  rational  curiosity,  when  they  become  an  amuse- 
ment or  relaxation  from  the  severe  demands  of  reflec- 
tion. They  are  a  good  condiment  but  a  poor  diet." 
Indulging  a  cordial  sympathy  towards  the  peculiar 
views  of  Dr.  Thorn  well,  I  am  yet  inclined  to  think 
that  he  has  pushed  a  principle  beyond  its  just  limits, 
and  that  in  his  extreme  advocacy  of  a  special  system, 
he  has  underrated  the  importance  of  scientific  pur- 
suit, and  withheld  from  it  the  honors  to  which  it  is 
entitled.  Passing  by  their  utility,  and  the  important 
part  which  they  have  played  in  the  progress  of  the 
age,  and  dissenting  too  from  the  opinion  of  the  author 
of  "  The  Pre-Adamite  Earth"  that  the  battle  of  a 
revealed  theology  is  for  the  future  to  be  fought 
exclusively  in  the  field  of  Natural  Science,  I  still 
believe  that  there  is  a  real  connection  between  the 
two,  and  that  the  principles  of  a  sound  theology  may 
be  carried  with  profit  into  the  domain  of  physical 
science.  Dr.  Thornwell  would  make  the  classics  the 
basis  of  Collegiate  instruction.  I  wish  that  my 
limits  would  allow  me  to  declare  all  that  he  has  said 
on  the  subject.  I  must  content  myself  with  a  few 
extracts.  "  As  a  discipline,  their  importance  cannot 
be  estimated  too  highly.  They  are  suited  to  every 
22 


350        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

stage  of  the  mind's  progress,  and  to  every  form  of  its 
activity.  They  have  gentle  stimulants  for  the  dor- 
mant capacities  of  the  child,  and  higher  demands 
for  the  expanding  powers  of  the  boy  ;  the  energies  of 
youth  find  in  them  the  fittest  materials  for  exercise, 
and  manhood  resorts  to  them  as  a  food,  a  solace 
and  a  charm.  There  is  no  department  of  our  being 
to  which  they  do  not  address  themselves. 
They  give  the  infant  its  best  lessons,  the  child's 
understanding  its  most  healthful  exercise,  the  youth- 
ful taste  its  richest  models,  and  the  matured  intel- 
lect its  profoundest  thoughts.  .  .  .  Who  has 
not  felt  as  he  poured  over  the  Divine  dialogues  of 
Plato,  or  tracked  the  remorseless  logic  of  Aristotle, 
that  a  new  life  was  stirring  within  him?  Who  has 
not  kindled  at  the  burning  periods  of  Demosthenes, 
or  been  lifted  to  loftier  views  of  history  by  the  preg- 
nant hints  of  Thucydides  ?"  I  have  to  add,  that  Dr. 
Thornwell  is  a  thorough  scholar ;  that  few  among  us 
have  made  equal  attainments  in  the  Greek  and  Latin 
languages,  and  that  he  has  added  a  knowledge  of  the 
Hebrew,  and  of  the  German  and  French. 

It  is  not,  necessary  for  me  to  say  much  of  him  as 
the  President  of  the  College,  and  to  give  in  detail  the 
particular  services  which  he  rendered.  This  has  been 
done  already  to  a  large  extent  in  the  historical  sketch 
of  his  administration.  A  few  more  words,  however, 
are  judged  necessary.  I  have  long  since  come  to  the 
conclusion,  that  he  united  more  of  the  qualities  which 
give  fitness  for  the  high  office,  than  any  one  who  has 
filled  it;  and  abating  none  of  my  admiration  of  the 
distinguished  men  who  preceded  him,  and  holding 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        351 

them  in  grateful  remembrance  for  their  valuable 
services,  still  I  must  present  him  as  the  model  Presi- 
dent; as  primus  inter  pares. 

The  following  list  comprises,  probably,  the  princi- 
pal publications  of  Dr.  Thorn  well: — Discourses  on 
Truth;  Arguments  of  Romanists,  discussed  and  re- 
futed. The  following  articles  in  "The  Southern 
Quarterly  Review"  for  1856,  when  he  was  its  editor: 
Miracles,  Plato's  Phaedon,  Free  School  System  of 
South  Carolina,  Barnard  on  American  Colleges, 
Memoir  of  Dr.  Henry.  And  in  "  The  Southern  Pres- 
byterian Review,"  the  following  articles : — The  Elder 
Question,  Paul's  Preaching  at  Athens,  Thoughts  upon 
the  Priesthood  of  Christ,  two 'articles  on  the  Philoso- 
phy of  Religion  by  Morell,  the  Christian  Pastor,  the 
Office  of  Reason  in  regard  to  Revelation.  Besides  these 
there  are  many  Sermons,  Tracts  and  Discourses,  only 
a  few  of  which  will  be  mentioned : — A  Sermon  on  the 
death  of  Hon.  John  C.  Calhoun,  a  Sermon  preached 
by  appointment  of  the  Legislature,  an  elaborate  Tract 
on  the  doctrines  of  Election  and  Reprobation,  a  Letter 
on  Public  Instruction  to  Governor  Manning,  Review 
of  Paley's  Moral  Philosophy. 

The  reader  may  desire  to  know  something  of  him 
as  a  man,  to  view  him  in  the  more  ordinary  phases  of 
life.  He  is  not  like  many  devoted  to  the  pursuits  of 
philosophy,  wanting  in  common  sense;  that  mother 
wit,  which  Pope  calls 

"  The  gift  of  Heaven, 
And  though  no  science,  fairly  worth  the  seven." 

He  is  remarkable  for  his  practical  wisdom,  and  throws 
gracefully  aside  his  lettered  habiliments,  and  assumes 


352        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

the  common  garb  of  humanity.  He  exhibits  no  pecu- 
liarities in  his  manners;  there  is  nothing  eccentric, 
nothing  different  from  other  men.  The  proud  heights 
of  philosophy  serve  not  to  conceal  the  world  from  his 
view,  but  only  to  widen  his  horizon,  and  multiply  his 
observation.  He  is  in  close  sympathy  with  it,  and 
not  inattentive  to  its  common  occurrences.  La 
Bruyere  could  not  have  found  in  him  as  Stewart  con- 
jectures he  might  have  done  in  Adam  Smith,  a  proto- 
type for  his  wild  but  amusing  fancies.  He  is  fond  of 
a  joke,  tells  a  good  one  himself,  and  laughs  heartily. 
This  imperfect  sketch  is  now  concluded.  Dr.  Thorn- 
well  is  in  the  vigor  of  life,  and  though  he  has  done 
much,  it  is  yet  to  be  regarded  only  as  a  presage  of 
those  nobler  labors  which,  under  Providence,  I  trust  he 
is  destined  to  accomplish. 

Mr.  M'Cay  entered  immediately  after  his  election 
upon  the  Presidency  of  the  College.  Sorry  am  I  to  record 
that  the  year  1856  was  one  of  great  tumult  and  dis- 
order. If  I  did  not  feel  assured  that  I  can  speak  of  his 
administration  in  a  spirit  of  calmness,  that  I  can  dismiss 
all  prejudice  and  improper  influences,  I  would  not  em- 
brace it  within  the  plan  of  this  historical  sketch.  I 
know  that  there  are  some,  and  perhaps  many,  who 
believe  that  it  would  have  been  better  to  have  stopped 
short  of  it,  as  from  the  very  nature  of  my  position,  it 
is  scarcely  possible  to  do  justice.  To  such  I  answer, 
that  I  have  no  unkind  feelings  towards  any  of  the 
actors  in  the  period;  that  I  have  no  malice  to  gratify, 
no  open  wounds  to  be  healed.  I  can  cast  aside  all 
personal  feeling,  and  make  my  record  with  all  the 
impartiality  which  becomes  historical  narrative.  If, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        35o 

for  the  reasons  above  stated,  it  is  urged  that  I  am  dis- 
qualified for  the  task,  it  may  be  said  on  the  other  hand, 
that  by  my  immediate  connection  with  the  events, 
I  have  enjoyed  the  best  opportunities  for  a  correct 
knowledge,  and  allowing  me  common  honesty,  am  the 
better  witness.  But  whatever  may  be  the  abstract 
view  of  the  matter,  I  beg  the  reader  to  suspend  his 
opinion  until  he  shall  have  read  what  I  have  written. 
I  shall  betray  no  unbecoming  spirit,  for  I  have  none ; 
and  though  I  may  differ  from  others  in  the  statement  of 
facts  and  in  conclusions,  still  they  are  differences 
which  may  be  tolerated  by  ingenuous  minds,  and 
should  bring  no  reproach.  It  is  now  my  purpose  to 
sketch  briefly  the  events  of  the  year  1856.  January 
21,  the  attention  of  the  Faculty  was  called  to  the  dis- 
orders in  the  Campus  the  Thursday  and  Friday  nights 
previous,  and  several  students  were  summoned  to 
answer  in  reference  to  them.  February  7,  a  special 
meeting  of  the  Faculty  was  called  on  account  of  the 
death  of  Dr.  Henry,  who  died  the  day  before  at  2 
o'clock,  P.  M.  February  18,  the  President  brought  to 
the  notice  of  the  Faculty  a  meeting  of  the  students  on 
Saturday  last,  at  which  a  resolution  was  passed  declar- 
ing a  re-organization  of  the  Faculty  neccessary,  and  a 
memorial  to  that  effect,  signed  by  nearly  all  the  stu- 
dents of  the  College,  adopted.  The  College  was  in  a 
state  of  high  excitement,  the  Faculty  were  assembled 
on  the  next  day,  (the  19th,)  and  the  President  reported 
an  affray  which  occurred  the  night  previous  between 
the  police  of  the  city  and  the  students,  in  which  several 
students  were  severely  beaten.  While  the  Faculty  were 
discussing  the  facts  brought  to  their  attention  by  the 


354        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

President,  the  alarm-bell  of  the  city  was  rung,  and, 
suspecting  that  the  difficulty  had  been  renewed, 
they  repaired  immediately  to  the  spot.  February 
20,  the  Faculty  were  summoned  by  the  President  to 
take  into  consideration  the  repeated  firing  of  guns  in 
the  Campus.  He  stated  that  the  Trustees  were  then  in 
session,  and  considering  the  subject  of  the  students 
having  arms,  and  that  it  was  now  necessary  to  adopt 
some  measure  to  restore  quiet  to  the  College.  It  is 
proper  to  inform  the  reader  that  there  was  a  cadet 
corps  in  the  College,  and  that  arms  had  been  furnished 
it  by  the  Governor  of  the  State.  These  were 
the  arms  which  created  disturbance,  and  of  which 
complaint  was  made.  Many  of  the  members  of  the 
Company  had  taken  them  to  their  rooms,  and  there 
used  them  to  disturb  the  quiet  of  the  Campus.  In  the 
recent  riot  with  the  police,  they  were  borne  upon 
the  shoulders  of  the  students.  I  state  what  I 
know  to  be  true  when  I  say,  that  the  Faculty  were 
unanimously  of  the  opinion  that  they  must  be 
removed  from  the  rooms  and  restored  to  their  only 
proper  depository,  the  Library;  and  that  before  the 
action  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  steps  had  been  taken 
for  their  recovery.  The  Faculty  did,  however,  doubt 
the  policy  of  disbanding  the  corps  of  cadets  at  the 
time.  The  Board  of  Trustees  required  them  to 
collect  all  the  arms  belonging  to  the  cadets,  and 
return  them  to  the  Library.  This  was  accordingly 
done.  The  arms  were  finally  deposited  in  the 
Arsenal  Academy  by  order  of  the  Governor,  and  the 
corps  of  College  Cadets  disbanded.  The  Faculty  en- 
tered earnestly  upon  the  investigation  of  the  recent 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        355 

riots,  and  their  deliberations  continued  many  days. 
February  26,  the  chief  offenders,  who  had  been  unable 
from  their  wounds  to  attend,  at  an  earlier  period, 
were  summoned  before  them,  and  put  upon  their 
trial.  Some  of  them  were  suspended,  and  two  reported 
for  expulsion.  The  College  was  in  a  state  of  extraor- 
dinary excitement,  the  students  had  pledged  them- 
selves to  share  the  fate  of  the  leaders  in  the  disorder, 
and  if  they  were  disconnected,  to  dissolve  their  connec- 
tion also.  Under  these  circumstances,  it  was  thought 
best  that  the  President  should  give  dismissals  to  all 
who  desired  it.  The  advantage  of  this  was,  that  the 
disconnection  was  in  accordance  with  the  forms  of  law, 
and  not  brought  about  by  any  overt  act  of  rebellion ; 
and  the  hope  was,  that  when  the  passions  of  the  mo- 
ment passed  away,  they  woul<J  of  their  own  will  seek 
a  restoration  to  the  College.  Many  availed  them- 
selves of  the  privilege,  and  with  vastly  diminished 
numbers,  it  was  resolved  to  suspend  the  exercises  for 
a  brief  period.  Accordingly  a  circular  was  issued 
bearing  date  March  1,  in  which  it  was  announced 
that  a  short  suspension  would  take  place,  and  that 
the  regular  exercises  would  be  resumed  on  the  12th  of 
the  month.  Many  of  the  students  remained  within 
the  walls  during  the  interval,  and  there  were  daily 
violations  of  the  peace  and  order  of  the  Campus.  The 
Faculty  resolved  that  all  students  who  were  concerned 
in  these  disturbances  should  be  arraigned  when  they 
made  application  for  re-admission. 

March  18,.  there  was  a  special  meeting  to  take  into 
consideration  a  disturbance  on  the  day  previous. 
April  9,  the  Faculty  were  assembled  to  investigate 


356        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

a  great  disturbance  created  by  drunken  students 
in  the  Campus.  From  this  period  to  the  close 
of  the  term,  the  College  was  comparatively  quiet. 
It  is  now  in  order  that  I  call  attention  somewhat 
particularly  to  the  proceedings  of  the  Board  of  Trus- 
tees for  the  first  half  of  the  year.  There  was  an 
occasional  meeting  of  the  Board  to  fill  the  vacancy 
occasioned  by  the  illness  of  Professor  Brumby;  but  a 
quorum  not  being  present,  the  members  in  attendance 
adjourned,  to  meet  on  the  first  of  February.  On  this 
day  there  was  again  a  failure  to  get  a  quorum,  but  the 
members  present  concluded  that  it  was  an  exigency, 
which  demanded  the  assumption  of  extraordinary 
powers,  and  they  determined  therefore  to  make  an  ap- 
pointment. It  was  therefore 

f 

Resolved,  That  Professor  John  LeConte,  formerly 
Professor  of  Chemistry  at  the  University  of  Georgia, 
and  now  of  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons 
of  New  York,  be  invited  to  discharge  the  duties 
of  Professor  Brumby's  department,  and  such  other 
duties  as  may  be  assigned  to  him  the  remainder  of  the 
session. 

February  19,  an  occasional  meeting  of  the  Board 
was  held  to  provide,  by  temporary  appointment,  for 
the  vacancy  in  the  Professorship  of  Greek  Literature, 
occasioned  by  the  death  of  Dr.  Henry.  A  ballot  was 
held,  and  William  J.  Rivers,  of  Charleston,  was  elected. 
A  petition  of  the  students  in  reference  to  the  state  of 
the  College  was  submitted,  and  laid  on  the  table. 
February  20,  the  following  resolution  was  adopted : 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        357 

Resolved,  That  this  Board  has  heard  with  deep 
regret  of  the  recent  agitation  in  the  College,  and  ex- 
pecting that  the  Faculty  will  do  their  duty  in  examin- 
ing into  the  matter,  and  reporting  the  proper  discipline 
to  be  exerted,  they  hereby  assure  the  Faculty  of  their 
cordial  support  in  the  proper  exercise  of  authority  in 
enforcing  the  laws  of  the  College. 

May  7,  the  Trustees  had  their  semi-anual  meeting. 
The  President  submitted  a  very  elaborate  report  on 
the  state  of  the  College,  and  the  reports  of  the  several 
Professors.  He  gives  with  great  minuteness  of  detail 
the  various  disturbances  which  characterized  his 
"  brief  and  inauspicious  administration,"  and  speculates 
fully  as  to  the  causes  which  produced  them.  I  believe 
that  the  true  causes  are  given  by  him,  and  I  would 
only  differ  in  respect  to  the  comparative  prominence 
assigned  them.  I  know  that  his  position  was  one 
of  peculiar  trial  and  difficulty,  and  that  to  maintain 
it  was  almost  an  impossibility.  He  was  a  stranger, 
had  no  hold  upon  the  people  of  the  State,  and  was 
called  to  the  Presidency  at  a  most  unfortunate  period, 
Dr.  Thorn  well  had  just  retired  from  the  College;  Dr. 
Henry  died  at  the  beginning  of  his  administration ; 
Professor  Brumby  was  entirely  disabled  by  protracted 
sickness  from  attending  to  any  of  his  duties,  and  Dr. 
Lieber  had  tendered  his  resignation.  The  Faculty 
were  therefore  much  weakened,  and  the  College  had 
sustained  a  heavy  loss  in  its  learning,  its  talents  and 
efficiency.  I  think  that  there  is  enough  in  the  second 
cause  assigned  by  the  President  to  account  for  all  the 
difficulties  which  he  encountered  at  the  outset.  I  use 


358        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

his  own  words: — " My  election  as  President  of  the 
College  had  met  with  violent  opposition  in  the  State, 
in  the  public  press,  in  the  City  of  Columbia,  and 
among  the  Trustees.  The  reasons  for  this,  published 
in  the  newspapers,  and  repeated  to  the  students  in 
private  conversation,  lessened  nay  influence  over  the 
young  men,  encouraged  discontent  and  dissatisfaction, 
and  made  it  almost  impossible  to  govern  the  College." 
It  is  true  also  that  he  was  not  the  choice  of  his  col- 
leagues, and  this  was  known  before  his  election. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  fact  would  weaken 
his  administration  with  the  students,  and  tend  to 
embarrass  it.  I  am  happy  here  to  record  his  testi- 
mony that,  "  although  they  gave  me  a  friendly  and 
steady  support,  and  no  act  of  mine  was  ever  thwarted 
by  them,  these  notions  among  the  students  were 
hurtful  to  my  success."  Notwithstanding  the  dis- 
orders of  the  period,  the  Professors  generally  report 
that  the  recitations  are  equal  to  those  of  former 
periods,  and  the  order  in  the  class-rooms  good.  May  9, 
Professor  Rivers,  who  had  been  filling  the  Greek  Pro- 
fessorship by  the  appointment  of  less  than  a  quorum 
of  the  Board,  was  now  elected  to  the  Chair  until  the 
stated  meeting  in  December,  and  Dr.  John  LeConte 
was  elected  to  the  Chair  of  Natural  and  Mechanical 
Philosophy.  On  referring  to  the  minutes  of  the 
Faculty,  I  find  that  there  were  no  disturbances  worthy 
of  note  in  the  period  intervening  from  the  adjournment 
of  the  Board  to  the  close  of  the  term.  The  Summer 
vacation  having  passed,  the  College  opened  in  October. 
The  first  disturbance  was  reported  at  the  Faculty 
meeting  on  the  27th,  and  this  was  an  outrage  com- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        359 

mitted  in  front  of  the  President's  house.  The  Faculty 
instituted  the  most  rigid  examination,  but  the  offenders 
escaped.  The  annual  meeting  of  the  Board  was  held 
November  26,  and  the  President  submitted  his  report. 
He  declares  the  condition  of  the  College  since  his  last 
report  to  be  quite  satisfactory.  "  The  diligence  in  study 
before  the  June  Examination,  and  the  quiet  and  order 
in  the  Campus,  were  remarkable."  The  classes  were 
reported  by  the  several  Professors  as  studious  and 
attentive.  The  number  of  students  on  the  Catalogue 
was  138.  A  very  important  reform  was  introduced 
in  the  course  of  the  year,  and  though  I  am  unable  to 
speak  with  certainty,  I  believe  that  to  the  President 
is  due  the  suggestion.  Heretofore  the  compositions 
and  declamation  had  but  an  incidental  effect  in  deter- 
mining the  stand  of  a  student.  It  was  thought  that 
proper  attention  could  only  be  secured  to  them  by 
enhancing  their  importance,  and  it  was,  therefore, 
determined  to  combine  the  marks  in  declamation  and 
composition,  so  as  to  give  them  a  weight  in  making 
up  the  average  rank  equal  to  that  of  any  of  the  studies 
of  the  College.  Having  had  to  supervise  the  exercises 
in  composition  to  some  extent  from  the  first  year  of  my 
connection  with  the  College  to  the  present  time,  I  am 
prepared  to  express  positive  opinions  on  the  subject; 
and  I  hesitate  not  to  say,  that  this  movement  was  of 
vast  importance  to  the  interests  of  the  College.  The 
careless  and  perfunctory  manner  in  which  this  duty  had 
been  discharged  from  time  immemorial,  was  a  rebuke 
to  the  Institution.  Nothing  was  more  common  than 
for  young  men  of  distinction  in  their  classes  to  be 
unable  to  write  a  sentence  of  pure  grammatical  Eng- 


360        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

lish.  Their  own  vernacular  had  been  degraded;  it 
was  thought  unworthy  of  special  attention,  and 
instead  of  being  the  first,  it  was  the  last  study  in 
which  our  students  aimed  at  excellence.  The  effect 
of  this  legislation  of  the  Faculty  has  been  to  awaken 
interest;  and  I  here  bear  witness  to  the  marked  im- 
provement. I  have  also  to  notice  another  important 
suggestion  made  to  the  Board  by  the  President;  this 
was  to  authorize  the  Faculty  to  admit  into  the  Col- 
lege, free  of  charge,  one  person  from  each  District  of 
the  State,  who  would  present  satisfactory  evidence  of 
the  narrowness  of  his  means,  the  purity  of  his  char- 
acter, and  promise  of  usefulness.  This  suggestion 
was  adopted.  Every  movement  to  diffuse  the  bles- 
sings of  education  is  to  be  commended;  and  more 
especially  is  it  true  when  it  is  designed  to  make 
the  poor  and  needy  the  participants.  November  26, 
Professor  Brumby's  resignation  of  the  chair  of  Chem- 
istry, Mineralogy  and  Geology,  was  laid  before  the 
Board.  On  the  same  day  the  resignation  of  Dr.  Lieber 
was  accepted;  and  I  have  to  add,  that  in  accordance 
with  previous  notice,  Mr.  McMaster,  the  Librarian 
and  Treasurer  of  the  College,  and  Secretary  of  the 
Faculty,  who  had  with  such  zeal  and  fidelity  dis- 
charged his  responsible  duties  for  nine  years,  vacated 
his  office  at  this  time.  November  29,  Professors 
Rivers  and  John  LeConte,  who  had  been  filling  their 
Professorships  temporarily,  were  permanently  elected. 
At  this  meeting  the  company  of  College  Cadets  was, 
by  formal  resolution,  abolished.  Professor  Joseph 
LeConte,  of  Athens,  Georgia,  was  elected  to  the 
Chair  of  Chemistry,  and  Robert  W.  Barnwell,  Jr., 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        361 

was  elected  Professor  of  History,  Political  Economy 
and  Philosophy.  It  is  due  to  Mr.  M'Cay  to  add,  that 
at  his  suggestion  the  Board  was  induced  to  partition 
the  Belles  Lettres  department  among  several  Profes- 
sors, and.  to  increase  the  scientific  course  by  the 
creation  of  another  Professorship.  December  4,  it 
was  ordered  that  the're  shall  be  an  examination  of  the 
three  lower  classes  on  the  first  Monday  in  April,  and 
that  the  June  examination  shall  take  place  within 
eight  days  before  the  first  of  July. 

I  have  now  adverted  to  the  principal  events  of  the 
year  1856.  It  is  apparent  that  it  was  a  year  of  ex- 
citement and  disorder.  The  Faculty  gave  to  the 
administration  their  cordial  support,  and  I  know  that 
they  were  active  and  vigilant  in  the  detection  of 
offenders,  and  prompt  in  the  execution  of  the  laws. 
They  passed  through  a  period  of  unprecedented  trial, 
and  their  garments!  were  unstained  by  the  breath  of 
suspicion.  The  President  bears  testimony  to  their 
fidelity.  Their  uniform  support  of  the  authorities 
of  the  College  under  circumstances  the  most  dispirit- 
ing, their  labors,  their  toils,  their  anxiety,  their 
watchings  by  day  and  by  night,  have  never  been 
appreciated. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

I  have  now  reached  the  last  President  of  the  College 
whom  I  shall  undertake  to  sketch.  I  have  presented 
Maxcy — the  persuasive  Maxcy — the  man  of  com- 
mingled taste,  oratory  and  philosophy ;  Cooper — the 
man  of  science  ;  Barn  well — the  accomplished,  edu- 
cated, polished  gentleman  ;  Preston — the  elocutionist 
and  rhetorician,  and  man  of  Belles  Lettres ;  Thorn  well 
— the  logician,  metaphysician  and  theologian ;  and  I 
have  now  to  speak  of  Henry — the  scholar,  with  learn- 
ing varied  and  profound.  I  -am  reminded  of  the 
fact,  that  with  the  three  last  gentlemen  was  associated 
Lieber,  the  great  political  philosopher,  with  a  fame 
overspreading  England,  France,  Germany,  and  the 
United  States.  What  a  constellation. of  genius  and  of 
learning !  Who .  upon  the  bright  roll  of  Presidents 
and  Professors  will  lay  claim  to  superiority !  At 
what  period  in  the  history  of  the  College  was  there 
such  an  assembly  of  men !  Each  had  his  rare  gifts, 
his  wondrous  endowments;  but  may  I  not  say  of 
Henry  what  Pythagoras  said  of  an  ancient  worthy, 

"  That  in  that  band  there  was  a  learned  man 
Of  wondrous  wisdom ;  one  who  of  them  all, 
Had  the  profoundest  wealth  of  intellect." 

Melancholy  thoughts  crowd  upon  my  mind.  I  was  their 
associate  in  the  Faculty.  They  have  left  the  College 
walls  forever.  I  call  to  memory  their  zeal,  their 


364        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

labors,  and  the  common  trials  through  which  we  had  to 
pass.  Henry  has  gone  to  a  better  world ;  the  others 
have  substituted  new  scenes  of  exertion ;  and  in 
undertaking  to  sketch  the  last  President  of  the  brilliant 
galaxy,  I  feel  almost  that  I  am  making  the  last  sad 
offering  upon  the  tomb  of  departed  greatness. 

Rev.  Robert  Henry,  D.  D.,  was  born  in  the  City  of 
Charleston  on  the  6th  December,  1792.  His  first 
teacher  was  the  Rev.  Dr.  Buist,  with  whom  he  com- 
menced the  study  of  Latin  when  only  six  years  of  age. 
As  he  had  lost  his  father,  upon  his  mother  devolved 
the  high  responsibility  of  training  and  educating  him ; 
and  with  a  devotion  and  self-sacrifice  rarely  exhibited, 
she  set  herself  to  the  arduous  task.  Determining  to 
give  him  all  the  facilities  for  the  most  perfect  and 
finished  education,  by  great  industry  she  accumulated 
a  fund  by  which  she  was  enabled  to  take  him  to  Eng- 
land, where  he  arrived  in  1803.  He  pursued  his 
academic  studies  "with  great  diligence  and  success, 
under  the  guidance  of  the  ablest  masters,  until  1811, 
when  he  entered  the  University  of  Edinburgh.  He 
took  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  at  that  celebrated 
seat  of  learning,  June  15th,  1814.  In  1816  he 
returned  to  Charleston.  He  selected  the  Ministry  as 
his  calling,  and  in  June  took  charge  of  the  French 
Protestant  Church,  where  he  preached  alternately  in 
French  and  English.  He  was  elected  Professor  of 
Logic  and  Moral  Philosophy  in  the  South  Carolina 
College  November  26,  1818,  in  place  of  Dr.  Mont- 
gomery, and  arrived  at  Columbia  the  20th  Decem- 
ber ensuing.  Dr.  Henry  was  now  introduced  to  a 
field  in  which  his  fine  intellect  and  rare  learning 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        365 

could  be  fully  exhibited.  He  was  yet  in  his  youth, 
and  I  think  it  strictly  true,  that  110  native  of  Caro- 
lina ever  had  his  mind  enriched  and  adorned  at  so 
early  a  period  of  his  existence  by  such  variety  and 
extent  of  acquirement.  He  was  to  occupy  the  Chair 
of  Moral  Philosophy  and  Logic,  and  his  preparation 
was  full  and  complete.  He  was  thoroughly  learned 
in  ethical  systems,  both  ancient  and  modern,  and  was 
the  first  among  us  to  comprehend  fully  the  Logic  of 
Aristotle,  and  to  appreciate  its  importance  in  a  system 
of  education.  But  this  was  not  all.  His  taste  for 
Philosophy  had  carried  him  to  the  study  of  man  in 
all  his  moral  and  metaphysical  relations,  and  stimu- 
lated by  the  fervid  genius  of  Brown,  whose  teachings 
it  was  his  good  fortune  to  hear,  he  explored  the  entire 
circle  of  knowledge  and  speculation,  and  made  the 
rich  fruit  of  the  master-minds  who  had  labored  in  the 
field,  his  own.  To  this  was  added  a  critical  acquain- 
tance with  the  classic  languages  of  antiquity,  and  the 
rare  accomplishment  of  an  intimate  familiarity  with 
German,  Dutch,  Spanish  and  French.  Young  as  he 
was,  he  was  not  without  reputation,  and  the  Board 
of  Trustees  called  him  unanimously  to  the  chair,  on 
account  of  his  great  attainments,  and  surpassing  quali- 
fications. 

I  shall  now  endeavor  to  follow  him  throughout  his 
connection  with  the  College,  to  mark  the  particular 
character  of  his  genius,  and  to  estimate  the  value  of 
those  services  which  he  rendered  to  the  cause  of  learn- 
ing and  education.  Dr.  Henry's  text-book  was  Paley's 
Moral  and  Political  Philosophy.  But  let  it  not  be 
supposed  that  he  was  attached  to  the  school  of  which 
23 


366        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

this  celebrated  author  is  the  exponent.  No  one  con- 
demned more  sternly  than  he  the  basis  of  Paley's 
system.  He  repudiated  without  qualification  that 
principle  which  grounds  moral  obligation  upon  utility  ; 
which  makes  expediency  the  rule  of  right ;  estimates 
actions  by  their  tendency  and  consequences,  and  thus 
supersedes  that  law  of  moral  rectitude,  that  primary 
and  fundamental  faculty  which  lies  deep  in  the  human 
conscience,  and  has  uttered  its  potential  voice  in  every 
age,  and  among  every  people.  His  pupil  and  friend, 
the  Keverend  Dr.  Thorn  well,  in  the  just  and  beautiful 
memoir  which  he  published  in  the  Southern  Quarterly 
Review,  new  series,  Vol.  1,  1856,  remarks,  that  in 
morals  he  excogitated  a  system  of  his  own,  the  leading 
hints  of  which  were  suggested  by  his  favorite  authors, 
Berkeley  and  Brown,  which  he  developed  with  great 
ingenuity.  In  the  brief  outline  of  his  teachings  for 
twenty  years  in  the  College,  it  is  stated  that  he 
regarded  conscience  "as  belonging  to  the  emotional 
part  of  our  nature,  and  as  having  no  other  office  than 
to  operate  as  a  sanction  in  reference  to  the  rules  which 
the  understanding  had  elicited;  it  was  nothing  but 
the  feeling  of  approbation  or  disapprobation,  conse- 
quent upon  the  contemplation  of  our  conduct  as  in 
conformity  or  otherwise  with  the  rule  whose  authority 
we  acknowledged."  "It  was  in  no  sense  a  law;  it 
was  simply  a  motive  to  enforce  the  law."  This  was 
Dr.  Henry's  theory  of  conscience.  But  he  recog- 
nizes its  existence,  unlike  some  against  whom  it  is 
charged  that  they  ignore  it  altogether.  Speculation 
has  been  busy  as  to  the  origin  and  functions  of  the 
moral  faculty ;  but  whether  it  be  derivative  or 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        367 

original,  simple  in  its  nature  or  the  result,  as  Sir  James 
Mackintosh  would  say,  of  the  combination  of  elements 
unlike  in. their  character,  the  question  I  conceive  is 
one  of  no  great  importance  when  it  is  admitted,  as  is 
done  by  that  celebrated  author,  that  "it  is  the  judge 
and  arbiter  of  human  conduct,  and  exercises  a  lawful 
authority  over  the  ordinary  motives  of  virtuous  feel- 
ings, and  habits  and  good  actions."  Upon  the  death 
of  Dr.  Maxcy  in  1820,  Dr.  Henry  took  upon  himself 
the  instruction  in  metaphysics,  which  was  regularly 
committed  to  him  by  the  Board  of  Trustees  in  1824, 
and  a  Chair  of  Logic,  Belles  Lettres  and  Criticism,  was 
then  independently  organized,  and  Professor  Nott 
appointed  to  the  charge  of  it.  He  occupied  the 
Metaphysical  Chair,  I  believe  continuously,  until  the 
year  1834.  It  has  already  been  seen  in  the  narrative 
of  the  events  of  that  period,  that  Dr.  Cooper  resigned 
the  Presidency  of  the  College  at  the  November  meet- 
ing in  1833,  to  take  effect  on  the  1st  of  January 
succeeding,  and  that  Dr.  Henry  was  appointed  Presi- 
dent pro  tempore.  This  brought  a  great  increase  of 
labor,  for  not  only  had  he  imposed  upon  him  the  exe- 
cutive duties  of  the  President,  and  the  multifarious 
vexations  attaching  to  the  office,  of  which  no  one  can 
form  an  adequate  conception  in  the  absence  of  direct 
experience,  but  he  had  also  to  teach  Political  Economy, 
which  for  many  years  had  been  done  by  Dr.  Cooper. 
It  cannot  be  disguised  that  he  was  anxious  to  be  called 
permanently  to  the  high  position.  Nor  is  there  anything 
censurable  in  this.  He  felt  that  he  had  claims  of  no  ordi- 
nary character,  and  that  it  would  be  but  an  appropriate 
reward  for  many  years  of  laborious  toil  and  perse- 


368        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

vering  industry  in  the  cause  of  letters,  and  of  earnest, 
faithful  service  to  the  Commonwealth  in  the  walls  of 
her  cherished  institution.  It  is  not  my  purpose  to 
speak  of  the  anguish  of  disappointed  hope,  to 
portray  the  emotions  of  one  who  in  a  moment  was 
made  to  feel  that  the  dearest  object  of  earthly  ambi- 
tion had  passed  beyond  his  grasp  forever.  That  the 
Board  indulged  no  feelings  of  unkindness  towards  him, 
I  have  no  doubt.  A  loud  clamor,  and,  I  am  sure,  an 
unfounded  one,  had  been  raised  against  him.  But  the 
public  voice  demanded  that  another  be  elevated  to  the 
Presidency,  and  the  Board  yielded  obedience.  Dr. 
Henry  fell  a  victim  to  the  religious  heresies  of  the  late 
President.  He  has  often  told  me  that  he  never  had 
the  slightest  sympathy  with  his  peculiar  views,  and 
that  the  only  occasion  on  which  unpleasant  words 
had  been  exchanged  between  them,  was  when,  face  to 
face,  he  had  denounced  their  unsoundness  and  ab- 
surdity. 

Though  there  are  none  among  us  who  would  now 
question  the  perfect  orthodoxy  of  his  religious  opinions, 
it  is  proper  for  me  to  state  that  at  the  period  of  which 
I  am  speaking,  he  shared  largely  in  the  general  repro- 
bation attaching  to  Dr.  Cooper  for  his  well  known 
heresies.  I  will  not  at  this  late  day  attempt  to 
account  for  it,  nor  is  it  necessary  for  my  purpose. 
Dr.  Henry  met  it  at  once  boldly  and  decidedly.  I 
have  before  me  a  sermon  preached  by  him  in  Charles- 
ton, December,  1833,  from  the  text  "  I  am  not  ashamed 
of  the  Gospel  of  Christ."  It  was  dedicated  with  all 
due  form  to  the  Trustees  of  the  College,  and  spread 
before  the  public,  "  that  all  unauthorized  speculation 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        369 

concerning  his  views  may  at  once  be  set  at  rest." 
From  the  address  to  the  Trustees  accompanying  the 
sermon,  I  make  the  following  extract: — "From  the 
first  hour  of  my  connection  with  the  College,  it  has 
been  my  aim  to  avoid  every  thing  which  might  have 
the  slightest  agency  in  disturbing  the  harmony 
existing  among  our  religious  denominations,  and  to 
promote  that  holy  calm  of  the  passions,  which  is  alike 
favorable  to  our  happiness  as  citizens,  and  to  success 
in  our  pursuits  as  philosophers.  Though  connected 
from  conviction,  and  early  association,  with  a  particular 
sect,  the  arduous  avocations  of  an  academical  life 
have  furnished  me  with  but  few  opportunities  of 
announcing  my  sentiments  from  the  pulpit.  In  fact 
your  wise  forecast  had  positively  forbidden  the 
acceptance  of  any  other  charge,  in  addition  to  the 
duties  of  a  Professorship To  my  aston- 
ishment, I  have  found  that  the  most  sweeping  mis- 
representations of  my  views  have  been  wantonly 
hazarded,  to  an  extent  which  I  should  deem  alarming 
if  I  did  not  know  that  their  utter  destitution  of  truth 
rendered  them  as  ridiculous  as  they  are  powerless." 

Though  the  Board  declined  making  Dr.  Henry  the 
President,  let  it  not  be  supposed  that  it  desired  to 
disconnect  him  with  the  College.  On  the  contrary, 
anxious  to  continue  the  advantages  of  his  great  learn- 
ing and  high  scholarship,  he  was  retained  in  his 
Professorship  under  the  new  organization.  He  thought 
proper,  however,  to  decline  acceptance,  and  retired  to 
a  small  farm  in  the  vicinity  of  Columbia.  If  there  be 
in  the  minds  of  any  a  lingering  doubt  as  to  the  fact 
whether  the  Board  entertained  kindly  feelings  to- 


370        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

wards  him,  and  placed  a  proper  estimate  upon  his 
learning  and  services,  that  doubt  must  be  removed  by 
the  following  resolution  which  was  adopted  on 
motion  of  General  Hamilton,  at  the  meeting  of  De- 
cember 17,  1834: 

Resolved.  That  the  thanks  of  the  Board  be  presented 
to  Professor  Henry  for  his  zealous  efforts  to  improve 
the  condition  of  the  South  Carolina  College  during 
the  past  year.  In  testimony  of  the  appreciation  by 
the  Board  of  his  fidelity  and  zeal,  and  of  their  estimate 
of  the  ability  with  which  he  discharged  the  duties  of 
his  Professorship,  the  Board  refer  to  the  fact  of  Dr. 
Henry  having  declined  the  vacant  Professorship  of 
Intellectual  and  Moral  Philosophy. 

It  is  proper  to  add,  that  at  this  time  the  Board  con- 
ferred upon  him  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinty. 
He  now  withdrew  from  all  ostensible  connection  with 
letters.  In  a  short  time  he  abandoned  his  country 
life,  and  accepted  the  office  of  discount  clerk  in  the 
Branch  Bank  of  the  State  at  Columbia.  This  office 
he  vacated  in  1839,  when  he  was  called  to  the  Pro- 
fessorship of  Metaphysics,  Logic  and  Belles  Lettres, 
in  the  College.  It  is  not  unworthy  of  mention,  that 
he  discharged  the  duties  of  his  comparatively  humble 
station  in  the  Bank  with  an  exactness  and  fidelity 
which  were  never  surpassed.  Of  this  I  have  been 
often  assured  by  the  presiding  officer.  There  is  a 
moral  in  this,  and  the  fact  reflects,  I  conceive,  the 
highest  credit  upon  him.  I  might  say  that  there  is  a 
moral  sublimity  which  is  rarely  exhibited.  He  was 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.         371 

a  model  of  a  bank  officer,  as  he  had  been  of  a  scholar. 
Nothing  but  the  most  elevated  character,  the  most 
deep-rooted  principle,  could  have  reconciled  him  to 
his  condition.  He  saw  in  it  the  hand  of  God,  and 
true  to  himself,  determined  to  discharge  his  duty  with 
the  utmost  fidelity.  Every  one  who  called  at  the 
bank  witnessed  his  cheerful,  open  countenance,  and 
the  beautiful  resignation  with  which  he  submitted  to 
his  fate.  No  doubt  the  saying  of  Epaminondas,  under 
similar  circumstances  often  occurred  to  him,  "that 
no  office  could  give  dignity  to  him  who  held  it,  but 
that  he  who  held  it  might  give  dignity  to  any  office." 
The  re-appearance  of  Dr.  Henry  in  the  College  in 
1839,  gladdened  the  hearts  of  all.  His  loss  had  been 
severely  felt.  Confessedly  the  most  finished  scholar 
in  our  midst,  the  common  sentiment  recoiled  at  the 
idea  that  such  a  man  should  be  buried  in  obscurity. 
At  the  November  meeting  Judge  Butler  put  him 
in  nomination  for  the  Professorship  of  Metaphysics 
and  Logic,  and  on  the  29th  of  the  month  he  was 
elected  Professor  of  Metaphysics,  Logic,  Rhetoric  and 
Belles  Lettres.  I  may  be  permitted  to  remark,  that 
I  was  at  that  time  a  member  of  the  Board,  and  can 
bear  personal  testimony  to  the  joyous  feelings  which 
animated  the  bosoms  of  all.  I  know,  too,  that  he 
returned  to  the  College  with  all  the  ardor  and  fresh- 
ness of  his  first  connection.  He  was  gratified  at  this 
new  proof  of  confidence.  There  were  no  wounds  to 
be  healed ;  no  sense  of  wrong  lurked  in  his  bosom,  the 
past  was  forgotten,  and  he  entered  upon  his  task  with 
uncompromising  devotion.  The  College  again  had  its 
great  scholar  within  her  walls;  he  was  yet  in  the 


372        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLFGE. 

fullness  of  his  strength,  and  for  seventeen  years  more 
was  to  consecrate,  with  untiring  energy,  his  genius 
and  learning  to  his  noble  vocation.  Upon  the  retire- 
ment of  President  Barnwell,  he  was  chosen  Chairman 
of  the  Faculty,  and  December  2,  1842,  was  unani- 
mously elected  President  of  the  College.  The  depart- 
ment of  Metaphysics  and  Moral  Philosophy  was 
assigned  him,  and  he  was  also  required  to  instruct  the 
Senior  Class  in  some  of  their  Greek  studies. 

We  have  now  reached  an  important  era  in  the  life 
of  Dr.  Henry.  He  had  attained  to  the  Presidency  of 
the  College.  I  was  his  colleague  in  the  Faculty,  being 
elected  at  the  same  session  to  the  chair  which  he 
had  vacated.  My  relations  towards  him  from  this 
moment  to  the  period  of  his  death,  were  of  the  most 
confidential  character,  and  no  one,  therefore,  I  con- 
ceive, has  a  clearer  right  to  speak  authoritatively  of 
him.  Never  did  one  bring  a  more  willing  and  deter- 
mined spirit  to  the  discharge  of  his  high  duties.  All 
that  experience  in  College  life,  all  that  sound  learning, 
untiring  industry,  and  unmixed  devotion  could  accom- 
plish, was  religiously  consecrated  to  the  task.  There 
is,  therefore,  no  occasion  for  reproach,  and  his  name 
as  the  President  of  the  College,  as  in  every  other  po- 
sition in  life,  is  without  spot  or  blemish.  No  dark 
shadows  have  passed  over  it,  dimming  even  for  a  mo- 
ment that  brilliant  light  by  which  it  is  encircled.  With 
the  liveliest  recollection  of  the  painful  anxiety  and 
solicitude,  the  severe  toils  and  labors  of  this  great  and 
good  man  during  the  short  period  of  his  Presidency, 
it  is  with  a  feeling  of  sadness  that  I  revert  to  this  por- 
tion of  his  history.  The  College,  its  honor  and  its 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        373 

glory,  alone  absorbed  his  thoughts.  He  had  been  so 
long  connected  with  it,  that  he  indulged  a  feeling  of 
paternity.  .  He  felt  that  a  failure  in  his  administra- 
tion would  bring  upon  him  irreparable  injury,  and  the 
slightest  disorders  would  startle  his  excited  imagina- 
tion. I  shall  never  forget  the  many  meetings  which 
I  had  alone  with  him  by  day  and  by  night,  when  I 
was  called  but  to  witness  again  and  again  the  mental 
agony  which  he  endured.  I  know  full  well  the  devo- 
tion of  the  many  distinguished  men  who  have  pre- 
sided over  this  Institution,  but  sure  I  am  that  in  zeal 
and  labor  he  equalled  any,  and  that  in  sufferings  he 
surpassed  them  all.  It  was  his  misfortune  to  be 
unpopular,  but  why  I  know  not.  In  strictness,  per- 
haps, he  had  not  with  his  other  thorough  attainments 
learned  well  the  art  of  controlling  and  governing 
youth ;  but  at  other  times,  and  under  other  circum- 
stances, there  have  been  those  in  the  Presidential 
Chair  in  no  sense  his  superiors,  who  have  achieved  a 
fair  measure  of  success.  Never  was  there  a  more  con- 
scientious officer.  No  .  duty  was  ever  left  undis- 
charged— no  matter  of  executive  business  postponed. 
But  it  is  my  purpose  not  to  censure  others,  but  to  do 
justice  to  a  good  man.  From  his  entrance  upon  his 
office  to  the  period  of  his  retirement,  November  28, 
1845,  he  never  relaxed  his  efforts,  and  nothing  im- 
proper or  unworthy  was  ever  charged  upon  him. 
Every  act  of  his  administration  was  in  beautiful  con- 
sistency with  his  well-established  character  as  a  scholar 
and  a  gentleman.  But  the  fortunes  of  the  College 
were  waning,  and  the  public  desired  a  change.  The 
Board,  painful  as  it  was,  felt  that  it  was  compelled  to 


374        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

move  forward.  Sure  I  am  that  no  unholy  considera- 
tions determined  its  conduct.  Among  its  members 
were  the  friends  of  his  youth  and  mature  years,  who 
were  bound  to  him  by  no  ordinary  ties.  Again  he  re- 
ceived a  fresh  proof  of  its  confidence  and  regard ;  and 
with  a  delicacy  of  sentiment  worthy  of  mention,  it 
tendered  him  the  Professorship  of  Greek  Literature, 
before  it  proceeded  to  the  election  of  the  new  Presi- 
dent. On  the  2d  of  December,  Dr.  Henry  informed 
the  Board,  through  Col.  Hampton,  of  his  acceptance. 
The  Trustees  very  properly  released  him  for  the 
future  from  attendance  upon  the  meetings  of  the 
Faculty,  and  from  all  participation  in  the  police  and 
discipline  of  the  College.  Is  there  not  something  in 
the  story  of  his  College-life  to  touch  even  the  most 
obdurate  heart  ?  Who  had  more  fully  experienced 
the  fickleness  of  fortune  ?  This  was  the  severest  trial 
of  his  life.  But  he  was  not  without  his  consolations. 
The  exigency  demanded  all  the  resources  of  philoso- 
phy and  religion.  He  felt  that  he  was  in  the  hands 
of  God,  and,  as  Dr.  Thorn  well  justly  remarks,  "he  had 
learned  that  man's  happiness  consisted  in  entire  con- 
formity to  His  will."  This  was  the  rule  of  his  life, 
and  there  was,  therefore,  little  difficulty  in  accommo- 
dating himself  to  the  circumstances  of  his  condition. 
Having  discharged  his  duty  to  the  best  of  his  ability, 
and  having  no  reproaches  of  conscience,  he  did  be- 
lieve that  the  Board  had  lent  too  ready  an  ear  to  the 
complaints  against  him.  But  he  soon  ceased  to  com- 
plain, and  I  hesitate  not  to  declare,  that  this  period  was 
the  happiest  of  his  College  life.  His  nature  was 
generous  and  forgiving,  and  being  called  to  a  department 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        375 

which  was  congenial  to  his  tastes,  all  recollection  of 
the  past  was  lost  in  the  devotion  to  his  task. 

Up  to  this  time  Greek  and  Latin  constituted  a  com- 
mon department.  Dr.  Henry  had  been  mainly  instru- 
mental in  effecting  the  separation,  and  thus  giving  to 
each  an  independent  existence.  In  this  he  exhibited 
his  love  for  the  classics,  and  his  idea  of  the  prominence 
to  which  they  are  entitled  in  a  course  of  College 
instruction.  He  had  the  honor  of  being  the  first 
Professor  of  Greek  Literature,  and  under  no  more 
favorable  auspices  could  the  chair  have  been  inaugu- 
rated. His  proud  and  sensitive  spirit  might  have 
sunk  under  other  circumstances.  He  was  now  fast 
approaching  the  sixth  decade  of  life,  but  his  health 
was  good,  and  he  believed  that  a  bright  and  new 
career  of  usefulness  was  before  him.  Our  recita- 
tion rooms  were  in  the  same  building,  and  immediately 
opposite,  and  day  by  day  I  witnessed  his  earnest 
enthusiasm,  and  his  unabated  devotion.  It  was  my 
habit  to  call  upon  him  after  the  hour  of  recitation  had 
terminated,  and  generally  I  found  him  engaged  in 
explaining  some  passage,  or  elucidating  some  point  to 
a  member  of  the  class  who  had  remained  for  further 
instruction.  This  was  done  not  only  with  willingness, 
but  with  parental  kindness.  His  constitution  up  to 
this  time  was  vigorous  and  robust,  but  in  a  few  years 
it  was  clearly  to  be  perceived  that  it  was  giving  way 
under  the  trials  and  labors  to  which  it  was  subjected. 
His  residence  was  a  mile  from  the  College,  and  for 
many  years  he  walked  to  his  class-room.  I  have 
times  without  number  witnessed  his  exhaustion  upon 
his  arrival,  and  nothing  less  than  a  sense  of  duty,  and 


376        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

a  conscientious  devotion  to  the  interests  of  the  College, 
could  have  sustained  him  under  such  circumstances. 
But  it  was  the  decree  of  Providence  that  this  eminent 
scholar,  this  good  man,  was  not  much  longer  to  adorn 
the  Institution  which  he  so  much  loved,  by  his  learn- 
ing and  his  virtues.  For  the  last  years  of  his  life,  he 
was  frequently  prevented  by  sickness  from  attending 
his  class-room.  He  met  his  classes  twice  a  day.  I 
have  now  before  me  the  languid  step  with  which  he 
pursued  his  way  up  the  Campus,  and  the  overpowering 
breathlessness  and  exhaustion  so  frequently  present 
when  we  exchanged  the  usual  salutation.  It  was 
under  these  circumstances  that  Dr.  Thornwell  con- 
ceived the  noble  idea  of  having  him  pensioned  by  the 
Legislature,  and  constituted  Emeritus  Professor  of  the 
department.  I  have  already  alluded  to  this  in  the 
history  of  his  administration.  Now  that  the  vene- 
rated scholar  has  forever  bid  adieu  to  the  classic  halls 
which  he  so  long  adorned  by  his  learning,  who  does 
not  regret  that  this  beautiful  compliment,  so  well 
deserved  by  the  man  and  the  cause,  had  not  been  ex- 
tended !  Never  was  there  one  who  would  have  placed 
a  higher  value  upon  it.  He  was  happy,  for  he  had 
"an  old  age  which  was  established  upon  the  founda- 
tions of  youth."  He  could  look  back  with  satisfaction, 
and  enjoy  that  "peacable,  unmixed  and  elegant 
pleasure"  which  is  so  impressively  presented  by 
Addison  as  the  reward  of  a  well-spent  life.  But 
had  it  been  done,  his  noble  heart  would  have  been 
filled  with  unutterable  emotions,  and  tears  of  gratitude 
would  have  coursed  down  his  manly  face.  On  the  3d 
of  February,  1856,  Dr.  Henry  was  seized,  when 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        377 

engaged  in  his  usual  morning  devotion,  with  a  malady, 
which  terminated  his  life  on  the  6th.  I  was  sum- 
moned to  see  him  on  the  day  of  his  attack,  but  his 
condition  did  not  excite  my  apprehension.  I  called 
again  on  Wednesday  at  noon,  and  remained  with  him 
an  hour.  Though  in  bed,  there  was  no  appearance 
of  disease,  and  no  one  doubted  that  in  a  few  days  he 
would  be  able  to  return  to  his  accustomed  duties. 
The  last  half  hour  I  was  alone  with  him.  I  shall 
never  forget  the  scene.  I  think  he  had  with  me  his 
last  conversation  on  earth.  He  was  happy,  cheerful, 
joyous.  He  had  no  apprehensions  of  death.  I  re- 
member well  his  remark,  that  "the  Doctor  thought 
him  well,  that  I  had  pronounced  him  well,  that  he 
felt  well,  and  that  he  must,  therefore,  conclude  he 
was  well."  He  was»a  good  laugher,  and  never  did  he 
indulge  himself  more  freely  than  on  this  the  last  hour 
of  his  life.  The  topics  of  conversation  between  us  are 
fresh  in  my  memory.  He  spoke  largely  of  the  College, 
and  thus  on  his  death-bed  sealed  his  devotion.  He 
developed,  as  he  had  often  done  on  previous  occasions, 
his  views  of  College  education,  with  peculiar  earnest- 
ness. He  spoke  kindly  of  many  of  his  colleagues  in 
the  Faculty,  and  of  the  distinguished  gentleman  who 
had  recently  vacated  the  Presidential  Chair  with 
marked  affection.  Nothing  unseemly,  nothing  unbe- 
coming fell  from  his  lips.  I  called  his  attention  to 
Dr.  Paley,  and  asked  some  questions  in  reference  to 
his  system  of  Moral  Philosophy.  He  bore  the  highest 
testimony  to  him  as  a  man  and  a  writer,  but  con- 
demned his  theory,  as  founded  on  a  wrong  basis.  But 
that  which  most  impressed  me  was  his  enlarged  and 


378        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

catholic  religious  spirit.  Of  one  thing  I  was  assured, 
that  he  loved  all  who  loved  our  common  Lord  Jesus. 
I  left  him,  but  had  scarce  reached  my  home  before  I 
was  informed  by  a  messenger  from  his  household,  that 
he  was  dead.  I  hastened  to  his  house,  and  upon  Dr. 
Thornwell,  Professor  Pelham  and  myself,  devolved  the 
sad  duty  of  laying  out  his  corpse.  He  died  instan- 
taneously, it  is  believed,  of  an  affection  of  the  heart. 
Death,  though  unexpected,  found  him  clad  in  his  full 
armour.  He  did  believe  that  the  great  business  of 
life  was  to  prepare  for  it,  and  come  when  it  may,  he 
was  ready  to  obey  the  summons.  Owing  to  the 
absence  of  a  member  of  his  family,  his  body  was  not 
interred  for  ten  days,  and  it  is  not  a  little  remarkable, 
that  during  this  long  period,  it  did  not  exhibit  any 
symptom  of  decomposition.  BLut  the  .unmistakable 
signs  of  death  were  present,  and  the  singular  condition 
was  due  to  causes  which  perhaps  may  admit  of  ex- 
planation. The  effect  produced  upon  the  public  mind, 
and  particularly  upon  the  College,  was  of  the  most 
decided  character.  Long  a  resident  of  the  community 
of  Columbia,  and  loved  by  all,  his  loss  was  mourned 
as  a  public  calamity.  Never  have  I  known  a  more 
general  expression  of  regret.  Respected  for  his 
virtues,  and  admired  for  his  elevated  character,  all 
joined  in  doing  homage  to  his  memory.  But  the 
College  felt  his  death  especially.  Students  and  Pro- 
fessors alike  realized  that  its  most  learned  Professor, 
its  peculiar  glory,  had  departed;  that  letters,  virtue 
and  religion,  had  lost  its  strongest  supporter,  its  most 
uncompromising  advocate.  At  a  special  meeting  of 
the  Faculty  held  February  7,  the  following  resolutions 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        379 

were  unanimously  adopted.  It  will  add  largely  to 
the  compliment  when  it  is  stated,  that  they  were  con- 
tributed by  Dr.  Lieber,  his  oldest  associate : 

Whereas,  It  has  pleased  the  Almighty  Disposer  of 
Events  to  remove  from  the  scene  of  his  earthly  labors 
our  colleague  and  friend,  the  Reverend  Robert  Henry, 
D.  D.,  Professor  of  Greek  Literature  in  the  South 
Carolina  College : 

Resolved,  That  we  deeply  lament  the  severe  loss 
which  has  been  sustained  by  the  Institution  in  the 
death  of  its  oldest  and  most  learned  teacher,  who,  full 
of  years  and  mature  wisdom  and  piety,  strong  in 
Christian  faith,  and  incessant  in  the  pursuit  of  know- 
ledge and  truth  to  the  last,  was  a  venerated  and 
noble  example  alike  to  the  students  and  ourselves. 

Resolved,  That  we  look  with  gratification  and  pride 
upon  a  connection  with  the  College  which  embraced  a 
period  of  nearly  forty  years,  and  was  illustrated  and 
adorned  by  his  rare  learning,  his  ripe  scholarship,  his 
elevated  ambition,  his  unremitting  industry,  his  con- 
scientious discharge  of  duty,  his  large  contribution  to 
letters,  and  his  eminent  services  in  the  cause  of  edu- 
cation. 

Resolved,  That  we  sincerely  sympathise  with  the 
members  of  the  house  of  mourning,  to  which  he  will 
never  return,  as  the  affectionate  husband  and  devoted 
father. 

Resolved,  That  as  a  token  of  our  respect  and  reve- 
rence for  the  deceased,  the  exercises  of  the  College  be 
suspended  until  the  close  of  the  week,  and  that  the 
members  of  the  Faculty  wear  the  usual  badge  of 
mourning  for  thirty  days. 


380        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  com- 
municated to  the  bereaved  family,  and  published  in 
the  papers  of  the  city. 

Nor  were  the  students  behind  the  Faculty  in  their 
demonstrations  of  love  and  veneration.  They  asked 
the  Faculty  to  be  permitted  to  co-operate  with  them 
in  the  proposed  honors  to  his  remains,  to  bear  them 
to  their  sad  resting  place,  and  resolved  to  present  his 
afflicted  widow  with  a  portrait  by  Scarborough,  and 
to  erect  a  costly  monument  over  his  grave.  The  in- 
terment did  not  take  place  until  the  15th  instant,  and 
the  exercises  of  the  College  were  suspended  a  week 
longer  than  was  expected.  It  is  worthy  of  note,  that 
Dr.  Henry's  death  occurred  in  the  midst  of  a  general 
disturbance  in  the  College  which,-  in  its  full  develop- 
ment, was  destined  to  break  forth  in  open  rebellion, 
and  shake  the  time-honored  Institution  to  its  basis. 
It  is  here  alluded  to,  because  the  occasion  furnished 
fresh  proof  of  the  love  and  veneration  of  the  students 
for  him.  What  mystic  power  is  that  which  restrained 
the  impetuosity  of  youth,  subdued  the  voice  of  passion 
in  bosoms  fired  by  a  sense  of  wrong,  imaginary  or 
real,  and  produced  a  stillness  like  unto  the  silence  of 
the  grave,  or  the  solitude  of  the  desert  ?  Ah  !  it  was 
the  power  which  went  forth  from  the  house  of  mourn- 
ing :  it  was  the  power  of  their  beloved  Professor  who, 
though  in  the  icy  embrace  of  death,  was  yet  speaking 
to  them.  To  my  mind  there  is  a  touching  beauty  in 
the  scene,  which  would  melt  any  heart ;  a  worth  of 
compliment  in  this  quiet,  spontaneous  tribute,  far  tran- 
scending all  others.  At  the  appointed  day  his  body 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        381 

was  borne  to  the  Episcopal  church-yard  by  the  Profes- 
sors and  students,  and  the  long  cortege  attested  the 
general  grief  for  his  death.  As  the  reverend  preacher 
pronounced  the  sad  words,  "  We  commit  his  body  to 
the  ground,  earth  to  earth,  ashes  to  ashes,  dust  to 
dust,"  all  felt  that  he  was  truly  a  man  of  rare  virtues, 
and  that  the  grave  was  soon  to  hide  from  mortal  view 
one  of  the  noble  of  earth.  Let  his  memory  be  cher- 
ished, as  the  world  seldom  affords  so  bright  an 
example. 

"  Rari  quippe  boni,  nuraero  vix  sunt  totidem  quot 
Thebarum  portae,  vel  divitis  ostra  Nili." 

The  spot  where  he  is  buried  is  marked  by  a  beauti- 
ful monument  erected  by  his  beloved  pupils,  which,  at 
their  request,  was  superintended  in  its  style  and 
arrangements  by  Professor  Reynolds,  and  bears  the 
following  inscription  : 


Born  in  Charleston,  December  6,  1792, 
Graduated  Master  of  Arts  at  the  University  of  Edinburgh, 

June  15,  1814, 

Ordained  to  the  Christian  Ministry  May  25,  1817, 

Chosen  Professor  in   South   Carolina  College,  1818, 

Keceived  the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  the  College,  1834, 

Died  in  Columbia  Feb.  6,  1856. 

"  Quis  desiderio  sit  pudor  aut  modus 
Tarn  cari  capitis  ?" 

Erected  by  the  students  of  South  Carolina  College, 

As  a  tribute  to  the  memory  of  one  who,  for  thirty  years,  adorned 

the  Institution  by  his  learning  and  piety. 

24 


382        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees, 
February  19,  the  following  resolutions  were  unani- 
mously adopted,  on  motion  of  Judge  O'Neall : 

Resolved,  That  the  death  of  Dr.  Robert  Henry,  Pro- 
fessor of  Greek  Literature,  is  an  event  deeply  to  be 
regretted  by  the  Trustees. 

Resolved,  That  a  service  of  more  than  thirty-five 
years  in  the  College  entitle  him  to  a  high,  a  very  high 
place  in  their  esteem,  respect  and  confidence. 

Resolved,  That  his  learning  and  virtues  are  the  best 
testimonials  of  his  name,  and  will  always  command 
for  it,  at  home  or  abroad,  veneration  and  respect. 

Resolved,  That  the  Board  individually  and  collec- 
tively sympathize  with  his  bereaved  family,  and  the 
only  adequate  consolation  which  they  can  offer,  is  the 
Christian's  hope  and  confidence  of  bliss  unutterable, 
and  full  of  glory,  in  an  everlasting  world. 

Resolved,  That  the  salary  of  the  deceased,  until  a 
successor  enter  upon  his  duties,  be  paid  to  his  widow. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  certified 
by  the  Secretary,  and  enclosed  by  the  Governor,  the 
President  of  this  Board,  to  the  family  of  the  deceased. 

True  to  the  pledge  made  to  my  reader,  I  have 
attempted  to  follow  Dr.  Henry  throughout  his  connec- 
tion with  the  College,  and  though  I  have  presented 
the  scene  of  his  death,  and  that  last,  if  possible, 
sadder  scene,  when  his  mourning  friends  committed  his 
body  to  the  tomb,  I  feel  that  I  have  not  yet  accom- 
plished my  task,  and  that  much  still  remains  to  do 
justice  to  his  memory. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        383 

There  is,  perhaps,  no  little  difficulty  in  presenting 
the  true  character  of  his  genius,  and  I  cannot  promise 
myself  that  I  shall  escape  the  criticism  of  the  many 
who  had  equal  opportunities  with  myself  for  forming 
an  estimate,  and  higher  qualifications  for  the  task. 
His  literary  pursuits  were  so  varied  and  extensive, 
and  his  knowledge  so  thorough,  he  was  so  in  love  with 
learning,  and  made  such  universal  acquisitions,  that 
it  is  no  easy  matter  to  declare  the  special  character 
of  his  genius,  and  to  set  forth  his  peculiar  excellence. 
I  have  no  hesitation,  however,  in  declaring  my  own 
conclusions.  In  the  long  period  of  his  career  as  an 
Instructor,  it  was  his  fortune  to  teach  in  many  depart- 
ments, and  in  all  he  displayed  a  sound  learning  and 
great  ability.  It  will  give  some  idea  of  his  labors 
when  I  state,  that  his  course  embraced  Moral  Philoso- 
phy and  Logic,  Metaphysics,  Rhetoric,  the  Belles 
Lettres,  Criticism,  Political  Philosophy,  Political  Econo- 
my, International  Law,  and  Greek  Literature.  Dr. 
Henry  had  great  taste  for  the  pursuits  of  philosophy. 
Of  his  system  of  morals,  and  of  his  acquirements  in 
that  branch  of  knowledge,  I  have  nothing  to  add  to 
the  little  which  has  been  written  in  a  previous  part 
of  this  notice.  He  was  long  the  teacher  of  Meta- 
physics, and  all  his  pupils  will  testify  to  the  zeal  and 
knowledge  which  he  exhibited.  He  loved  Locke,  the 
man  and  the  philosopher,  and  believed  that  no  one  in 
modern  times  had  rendered  an  equal  service  in  his 
field  of  exertion.  His  system  of  metaphysics  had  its 
beginning  in  that  celebrated  author,  and  he  would 
dwell  with  admiration  upon  his  genius  and  labors.  I 
am  sure  he  thought  that  very  little  of  value  had  been 


384        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

accomplished  since  his  day  ;  and  in  the  beautiful  and 
poetic  exposition  of  Brown  was  found,  he  conceived, 
all  that  was  demanded.  With  the  school  of  Keid  and 
Stewart,  and  the  more  recent  speculations  of  Hamil- 
ton, he  had  but  little  sympathy.  He  was  an  idealist, 
but  not  in  the  absolute  sense,  as  was  Berkeley. 
He  adopted  the  scheme  now  known  as  Cosmothetic 
Idealism,  and  which  numbers  among  its  supporters, 
Locke,  Brown,  and,  according  to  Hamilton,  a  majority 
of  philosophers.  In  the  department  of  Belles  Lettres 
and  Criticism,  he  was  conspicuous.  Schooled  as  he 
was  in  the  letters  of  Greece  and  Rome,  and  familiar 
with  the  polite  literature  of  all  ages  and  all  times,  it 
would  be  strange  indeed  if  he  did  not  appear  to  sin- 
gular advantage.  His  taste,  I  think,  was  just  and 
discriminating.  He  had  studied  carefully  the  great 
masters  of  poetry,  and  had  a  clear  perception  of  their 
characteristic  genius  and  beauty.  Nor  was  he  incap- 
able of  writing  good  poetry.  I  remember  well  that 
a  gifted  lady  once  asked  him  the  question,  "What  is 
the  precise  structure  of  the  Sonnet  ?"  He  replied,  I 
will  answer  you  when  I  return  to  my  house.  Imme- 
diately upon  his  arrival,  he  composed  a  beautiful  Son- 
net, and  sent  it  with  his  compliments  to  her.  If  any 
proof  is  wanted  of  Dr.  Henry's  literary  taste,  I  point 
to  many  of  his  published  discourses,  and  particularly 
to  his  eulogy  upon  Mr.  Calhoun,  and  his  address  be- 
fore the  two  Societies  of  the  College.  But  what  shall 
I  say  of  his  scholarship,  and  what  language  of  praise 
would  be  too  extravagant !  Who  among  us  had  more 
intimate  companionship  with  Homer  and  Hesiod,  and 
Plato  and  Aristotle,  and  ^Eschylus  and  Sophocles,  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        385 

Cicero,  Horace  and  Virgil,  and  who  drank  deeper 
from  that  ancient  fountain  of  thought  and  inspiration, 
which,  though  a  world  has  for  centuries  partaken  of 
its  waters,  yet  remains  undiminished  in  volume,  and 
in  crystal  clearness  and  purity !  His  talent  for  lan- 
guages was  most  extraordinary,  and  his  knowledge 
was  wonderfully  critical  and  idiomatic.  He  spoke 
many  of  the  modern  languages  with  the  fluency  with 
which  he  used  his  own  vernacular  tongue.  In  view 
of  this  rare  endowment  of  Dr.  Henry,  I  may  risk  the 
remark,  that  perhaps  this  capacity  for  language  was  the 
most  striking  characteristic  of  his  genius.  But  may 
it  not  be  said  that  his  reputation  in  other  departments 
of  learning  has  been  obscured  by  the  greater  splendor 
in  this.  It  was  remarked  of  Cicero,  that  the  glory  of 
the  epistolary  writer,  the  philosopher  and  the  moralist, 
had  been  eclipsed  by  the  superior  effulgence  of  the 
rhetorician  arid  orator.  My  notice  of  Dr.  Henry 
would  be  incomplete  if  I  omitted  to  speak  of  his 
extraordinary  conversational  powers.  By  conversa- 
tion I  do  not  mean  the  power  of  giving  a  profound 
disquisition  or  a  learned  lecture,  of  displaying  rare 
and  recondite  learning,  and  dogmatizing  a  company 
without  permitting  any  to  say  a  word.  This  is  the 
proper  work  of  the  Professor's  chair,  and  when  the  occa- 
sion demanded,  no  one  could  surpass  him  in  it.  His 
mind  was  full,  and  his  knowledge  came  at  his  bidding. 
But  in  the  language  of  the  Spectator,  I  mean  "that 
part  of  life  which  is  an  indulgence  to  the  sociable  part 
of  our  make ;  and  which  inclines  us  to  bring  our 
proportion  of  good  will  or  good  humor  among  the 
friends  we  meet  with."  In  this  respect  Dr.  Henry 


386        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

was  highly  gifted.  He  was  in  the  highest  sense  a 
good  talker,  and  while  his  good  sense  protected  him 
against  the  introduction  of  improper  topics,  he  never 
failed  to  be  instructive  and  agreeable  to  all  who  heard 
him.  As  a  teacher  he  was  earnest  and  sincere,  full 
of  kindliness  arid  patient  endurance.  No  one  could 
impart  his  knowledge  with  more  clearness  and  facility. 
"When  as  a  student  I  had  my  first  intercourse  with 
him,  he  was  remarkable  for  the  order  and  discipline 
which  he  enforced  in  his  class-room;  but  advancing 
years  produced  its  accustomed  effect-  upon  a  noble 
and  benevolent  heart,  and  an  overflowing  kindness 
would  find  excuses  for  youthful  folly  and  indiscretion. 
He  had  not  lived  in  vain ;  reflection  and  experience 
had  brought  a  becoming  wisdom.  His  temper  was 
subdued,  and  his  instructions  parental  and  affec- 
tionate. He  knew  that  he  filled  a  position  of  high 
responsibility,  that  he  was  now  old,  and  soon  must 
give  way  to  others.  He  exemplified  the  sentiment  of 
Cicero,  "that  there  is  a  graceful  style  of  eloquence  in 
an  old  man,  unimpassioned  and  subdued,  and  very 
often  the  elegant  and  gentle  discourse  of  an  eloquent 
old  man  wins  for  itself  a  hearing." 

I  will  not  disguise  that  I  am  reluctant  to  close  this 
sketch  ;  that  lam  most  anxious  to  present  Dr.  Henry 
in  his  true  character  to  my  reader.  With  an  amiable 
and  benevolent  temper,  he  united  a  stern  independence, 
and  an  inflexible  courage  in  the  maintenance  of  right 
and  principle.  This  created  the  impression  with  many 
that  he  was  imperious,  exacting,  and  too  self-reliant.  In 
his  great  learning  and  varied  endowments,  there  was 
much  to  arouse  the  pride  of  the  natural  heart,  but  I 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        387 

state  what  I  know,  when  I  say  that  he  had,  in  its 
truest  sense,  the  virtue  of  humility.  There  were  no 
metaphysical  subtleties,  no  theological  refinements  in 
his  religious  creed.  He  cared  little  for  German  specu- 
lation, and  the  teachings  of  their  schools  of  philoso- 
phy he  thought  were  scarce  worth  the  time  which  it 
would  take  to  learn  them.  How  often,  in  conversa- 
tion with  me,  has  he  spoken  of  the  boasted  triumphs 
of  the  Reason,  and  of  the  utter  vanity  of  human  wis- 
dom! He  did  believe  that  Heaven  is  not  to  be 
entered  by  earthly  means,  by  any  devices  of  man ; 
that  God  alone  can  point  the  way,  and  that  no  philoso- 
phy, no  mental  discipline,  no  exertions  of  the  will,  no 
self-sacrifice,  no  measure  of  devotion  have  ever  secured 
admission.  It  is  well  to  remind  the  whole  class  of 
daring  speculators  of  the  fable  of  Icarus,  whose  waxen 
wings  were  melted  by  a  too  near  approach  to  the  sun, 
and  who,  in  consequence,  fell  headlong  into  the  depths 
of  the  jEgean  Sea. 

It  cannot  be  necessary  for  me  to  say  much  upon  the 
last  topic  which  I  proposed  to  myself;  that  is,  to  esti- 
mate the  value  of  those  services  which  he  rendered  to 
the  cause  of  learning  and  education.  This  has  already 
been  done  in  re-counting  his  labors  in  the  College,  to 
an  extent  which  entitles  him  to  exalted  praise.  Who 
in  the  State  will  compete  with  him  for  the  honors  so 
justly  due  to  him  who  has  toiled  longest,  and  most 
successfully !  He  had  the  most  decided  notions  as  to 
the  kind  of  education  best  suited  to  a  College.  The 
reader  is  prepared  to  believe,  that  according  to  him  a 
sound  classical  knowledge  must  constitute  the  basis, 
and  that  the  pursuits  of  philosophy,  as  distinguished 


388        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

from  science,  should  be  the  chief  objects  of  attention. 
Who  will  tell  how  much  he  accomplished  in  the  good 
work  of  educating  the  mind  of  this  State,  and  others 
at  the  South!  Investing  learning  with  its  highest 
dignity,  the  tone  which  he  imparted  to  its  followers 
was  of  the  noblest,  and  most  elevated  character.  It 
eschewed  all  connection  with  every  thing  low  and  de- 
grading, and  he  alone  was  a  true  worshipper  at  the 
altar,  whose  affections  were  purified,  and  nature  ex- 
alted. He  studied  through  life  "to  know  himself;" 
a  great  lesson  inculcated  alike  by  philosophy  and  re- 
ligion. He  was  not  guilty  of  the  mistake  of  being  too 
much  known  to  others,  and  too  little  to  himself.  He 
had  studied  his  own  heart,  and  derived  from  it  all  the 
advantages  which  such  a  study  can  give;  and  im- 
pressed as  he  was  by  the  importance  of  the  matter,  an 
importance  for  which  there  can  be  no  substitution, 
he  might  well  have  directed,  like  Pontanus,  to  have 
inscribed  upon  his  tomb,  "  I  am  beloved  by  the  powers 
of  literature,  admired  by  men  of  worth.  Thou  knowest 
who  I  am,  or  more  properly  who  I  was.  For  thee, 
stranger,  I  who  am  in  darkness  cannot  know  thee,  but 
I  entreat  thee  to  know  thyself" 

He  published  little.  Two  eulogies  upon  President 
Maxcy  and  Professor  Smith,  another  upon  Mr. 
Calhoun,  an  address  before  the  Societies  of  the  College, 
a  few  Sermons,  and  his  contributions  to  the  Southern 
Review,  consisting  of  articles  on  Niebuhr's  Roman 
History,  the  Romances  of  the  Baron  La  Motte  Fouque, 
Goethe's  Wilhelm  Meister,  and  Waterhouse's  Junius, 
embrace  all  perhaps  worthy  of  mention. 

I  have  only  to  add,  that  Dr.  Henry  was  ordained  a 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        389 

Deacon  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  by  Bishop 
Gadsden,  on  the  10th  March,  1841,  and  a  Presbyter 
on  the  25th  September,  1842. 

My  task  is  done.  A  pupil  and  a  colleague  offers 
this  poor  tribute  to  the  memory  of  one  whose  confi- 
dence he  shared,  and  whose  virtues  will  never  be 
forgotten.  He  sleeps  in  peace,  and  his  sorrowing 
friends  may  take  consolation  in  the  sentiment  even 
of  an  ancient  philosopher,  that  death  is  not  to  be 
mourned  when  it  is  followed  by  an  immortality  of 
happiness. 

Richard  T.  Brumby  was  born  August  4,  1804,  in 
Sumter  District,  South  Carolina.  His  father  died 
when  he  was  but  six  years  old,  leaving  a  large  family 
of  young  children,  and  but  a  small  property  for  their 
maintenance  and  education.  At  the  time  of  the 
division  of  the  estate  he  was  sixteen  years  old,  and  he 
resolved  to  spend  his  little  patrimony  in  acquiring  an 
education.  For  six  months  he  walked  daily  four 
miles  and  a  half  to  the  nearest  academy,  in  which  the 
Latin  language  was  taught  by  a  Virginian  named 
Sledge.  In  that  school  he  read  parts  of  Historise 
Sacrge,  Cornelius  Nepos,  and  Erasmus.  In  January, 
1821,  he  started  in  a  gig  drawn  by  one  horse,  and 
driven  by  a  negro  boy,  to  Statesville,  North  Carolina. 
He  reached  Camden  late  in  the  evening  of  the  first 
day.  Three  wagons  were  encamped  in  the  neighbor- 
hood. He  drove  to  them  and  asked,  "will  any  of  you 
pass  through  Statesville,  North  Carolina?"  "I  will," 
was  the  reply  of  a  tall,  thin  old  man,  in  a  pleasant 
voice.  "  Will  you  take  my  trunk  and  let  me  share 
your  toils  and  camp-fare  ?"  "  I  will,"  says  the  old  man, 


390        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

"if  you  think  you  can  walk  so  far  in  such  rainy,  cold 
weather,  over  such  muddy  roads.'*  Ordering  his  trunk 
to  be  taken  off,  and  his  horse  unharnessed  and  fed, 
he  partook  of  the  wagoner's  supper,  and  slept  soundly 
in  the  blankets  which  he  brought  along  with  him. 
The  next  morning  his  servant  embarked  for  his  home, 
and  young  Brumby  entered  upon  a  pedestrian  tour  of 
thirteen  days,  in  the  course  of  which  he  aided  his  new 
acquaintance  in  all  his  labors.  At  Statesville  he 
entered  the  Classical  School  taught  by  the  Reverend 
John  Marshall.  In  November  of  that  year,  Mr. 
Marshall  removed  to  Lincolnton,  to  take  charge 
of  the  academy  in  that  place,  and  Mr.  Brumby 
accompanied  him.  In  October,  1822,  he  was  admitted 
to  the  Junior  Class  of  the  South  Carolina  College — a 
little  more  than  two  years  after  he  began  the  study 
of  the  Latin  language.  By  this  time  his  patrimony 
was  exhausted,  although  he  had  practised  a  rigid 
economy.  He  pressed  forward,  receiving  some  aid  from 
a  member  of  his  family,  but  the  state  of  his  finances 
forced  him  to  teach  a  small  school  fourteen  miles  east 
of  Columbia  during  the  vacation,  for  which  service  he 
received  one  hundred  dollars.  He  took  his  degree  in 
the  class  of  1824,  and  was  awarded  the  first  honor. 

The  year  following  his  graduation,  he  taught  in  the 
family  of  the  late  Richard  Singleton,  and  at  the  same 
time  began  the  study  of  the  law  under  general  directions 
given  him  by  Governor  Miller  and  the  Hon.  Wm.  C. 
Preston.  In  December,  1825,  he  was  licensed  to  prac- 
tice law,  and  immediately  taken  in  partnership  by  Mr. 
Preston  in  the  courts  of  Sumter  District.  As  he  had 
not  been  in  an  office,  he  was  not  familiar  with  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        391 

practical  forms  and  details  of  his  profession,  and  he 
devoted  the  years  1826  and  1827  to  their  study.  His 
severe  toils  told  upon  his  health,  and  in  the  succeed- 
ing year  it  was  so  seriously  affected,  that  relief  was 
sought  by  a  journey  to  the  west.  Upon  his  return 
to  South  Carolina,  his  health  was  restored,  and  he 
removed  to  Lincolnton,  where  he  practised  law  for 
two  years.  In  1831,  he  purchased  a  farm  in  Mont- 
gomery, Alabama,  with  the  intention  of  prosecuting 
his  profession  in  that  growing  town.  Next  we  find 
him  a  resident  of  Tuscaloosa,  and  the  editor  of  the 
"  Expositor,"  a  newspaper  established  to  espouse 
the  cause  of  Nullification.  August  12,  1834,  he  was 
most  unexpectedly  elected  to  the  Chair  of  Chemistry, 
Mineralogy  and  Geology,  in  the  University  of  Alabama. 
At  the  age  of  thirty,  he  began  the  study  of  those 
sciences  while  he  was  engaged  in  giving  daily  instruc- 
tion in  them.  He  was  still  young  enough,  full  of 
enthusiasm,  had  a  well-furnished  laboratory,  and  the 
Nutall  Cabinet,  which  embraced  a  rich  collection  of 
minerals,  fossils,  &c.  He  remained  in  the  University 
untilJanuary  1849,  when  he  removed  to  Columbia,  to 
take  charge  of  the  Chemical  Professorship  to  which  he 
had  been  elected  the  December  preceding.  Professor 
Brumby's  labors  in  the  University  of  Alabama  were  of 
the  most  valuable  character,  and  reflected  the  highest 
honor  upon  him.  There  is  no  doubt  that  he  gave  the 
first  impetus  to  the  cause  of  science  in  that  part  of 
the  country,  and  imparted  to  it  a  dignity  and  impor- 
tance which  it  had  not  previously  enjoyed.  He 
was  not  only  acceptable  in  his  Professorship,  but 
he  built  up  an  enviable  reputation  in  that  State. 


392        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

It  was  this  reputation  which  attracted  the  attention 
of  the  Trustees  of  the  South  Carolina  College  and 
he  received  his  appointment  under  circumstances 
the  most  flattering.  Of  his  labors  here,  I  will  now 
speak.  There  is  no  doubt  that  he  brought  to  his  chair 
an  earnest  spirit,  and  a  mind  well  stored  with  its 
peculiar  learning.  He  loved  the  pursuits  of  science, 
and  for  many  years  had  consecrated  all  his  time  and 
talents  to  it  with  singular  devotion.  He  exalted  it 
above  every  other  department  of  collegiate  instruction, 
and  truly  believed  that  the  highest  interests  of  man, 
the  greatest  progress  of  the  race,  were  involved  in  its 
future  development.  He  was  ever  willing  to  battle 
for  his  cause,  and  feared  not  the  most  formidable 
adversary.  He  gave  no  quarters,  and  in  the  fervor  .of 
his  devotion,  would  perhaps  sometimes  push  the 
claims  of  science  beyond  their  legitimate  limits.  I 
mention  this,  not  for  censure,  but  for  praise.  The 
cause  of  knowledge  is  the  cause  of  truth,  and  its 
spirit  rebukes  all  lukewarmness  and  cold  profession. 
He  was  always  to  be  found  in  the  laboratory.  There 
he  toiled  with  laborious,  persevering  industry,  amid 
chemicals,  shells  and  fossils.  To  him  there  was  no 
company  so  attractive,  no  objects  so  inviting.  I 
think  that  much  of  the  ill-health  which  was,  at  no 
distant  period  to  come  upon  him,  was  due  to  his  severe 
devotion  and  unrelaxed  attention.  He  commenced 
the  study  of  science,  as  has  been  seen,  late  in  life,  and 
felt  that  he  had  not  the  advantages  which  might  have 
been  extended  by  an  earlier  introduction.  He  deter- 
mined to  master  all  its  learning,  and  to  be  present  at 
its  forthcoming  revelations.  All  who  heard  him  will 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        393 

testify  to  his  knowledge,  and  his  patient,  careful 
teaching.  I  know  that  he  was  not  wanting  in  love  for 
the  pursuits  of  Chemistry  and  that  he  rendered  due 
homage  to  the  names  of  Lavoisier,  Black,  Priestley, 
Davy,  Dalton,  and  others,  who  have  contributed  so 
much  to  bring  that  science  to  its  present  improved  con- 
dition. But  I  think  he  had  more  sympathy  with 
Cuvier,  Owen,  Agassiz,  Miller  and  Lyell,  and  walked 
with  -more  pleasure  along  the  path-way  which  they 
had  trodden.  In  proof  of  Professor  Brumby's  ar- 
duous labors,  and  sincere  devotion  to  the  cause  of 
science,  I  must  not  omit  to  mention  that  in  the 
course  of  twenty  years  he  collected  and  arranged 
a  cabinet  of  seven  thousand  specimens  of  minerals, 
rocks,  fossils,  recent  shells,  &c.  The  collection  indeed 
contained  three  cabinets,  each  species  in  each  being 
numbered  and  labelled,  and  entered  in  catalogues, 
having  each  a  copious  index.  This  is  his  scientific 
monument,  and  well  may  he  be  proud  of  it.  No  one 
but  a  man  of  science  can  fully  appreciate  the  labor, 
the  care,  the  knowledge,  and  the  pecuniary  expense 
necessary  to  the  accomplishment  of  such  a  work. 
I  think  I  have  been  informed  that  it  is  the  most 
complete  and  valuable  collection  of  the  kind  in  the 
Southern  country,  and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  it 
was  not  retained  in  our  College. 

Professor  Brumby's  collegiate  instructions  were  not 
confined  alone  to  the  departments  which  he  was  re- 
quired to  teach  when  he  became  connected  with  this 
Institution.  He  introduced  Physiology,  Conchology, 
and  Agricultural  Chemistry,  into  the  Alabama  Univer- 
sity, and  taught  them  successfully  for  many  years. 


394        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

He  urged  strenuously  in  public  discourses  and  other- 
wise, the  importance  of  enlarging  the  scientific  course 
of  study  in  this  College,  and  it  was  finally  done  by 
the  efforts  of  Mr.  M'Cay.  In  July,  1855,  he. suffered 
a  violent  congestive  attack  at  his  plantation  in  Ala- 
bama, which  closed  his  labors  as  a  teacher  of  youth. 
He  had  collected  ample  materials  for  certain  scientific 
works,  and  the  composition  of  them  was  actually  begun 
but  his  design  was  thus  suddenly  arrested.  Though 
unable  to  perform  his  duties,  the  Board  of  Trustees 
were  reluctant  to  part  with  him,  and  his  connection 
was  continued  a  year  longer,  in  the  hope  that  his 
health  would  be  restored.  But  the  hope  was  illusory, 
and  his  resignation  was  accepted  December  4,  1856. 
At  that  meeting  the  following  resolutions  were  adopted : 

Resolved,  That  this  Board,  in  receiving  the  resigna- 
tion of  Professor  Brumby,  sympathise  with  him  in 
the  causes  which  induce  his  separation  from  the  Col- 
lege. 

Resolved,  That  this  Board  hereby  express  their 
appreciation  of  his  services  to  the  Institution,  and 
attest  to  the  ability  and  diligence  with  which  he 
has  performed  the  duties  of  his  department. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  for- 
warded to  Professor  Brumby  by  the  Secretary. 

He  is  now  a  resident  of  the  town  of  Marietta, 
Georgia,  and  may  he  in  his  retirement  enjoy  all  that 
consolation  which  the  recollection  of  a  well-spent  life 
can  impart. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

Francis  Lieberwas  born  March  18,  1800,  in  Berlin, 
Prussia.  He  went  first  to  a  private  Grammar  School 
in  Berlin,  and  then  to  one  of  the  old  gymnasia  in  that 
city,  called  the  Gray  Convent.  When  but  a  lad,  he 
left  the  school-house  for  the  tented  field,  and  had  the 
good  fortune  to  bear  a  part  in  some  of  the  most 
renowned  battles  in  modern  times.  I  need  only  men- 
tion the  names  of  Ligny,  Waterloo  and  Namur.  Upon 
his  return  from  his  campaign,  he  set  to  work  to  pre- 
pare himself  for  the  University  of  Berlin,  to  which, 
in  a  short  time,  he  was  admitted,  and  where  he 
was  first  matriculated.  Subsequently  he  became 
connected  with  the  University  of  Jena,  a  Saxon 
University,  where,  to  secure  himself  against  the 
interference  of  the  Prussian  Govemment,  he  was 
obliged  to  acquire  the  right  of  academic  citizenship,  by 
procuring  the  title  of  Doctor  of  Philosophy.  From  the 
University  of  Jena,  he  went  to  the  University  of  Halle, 
and  thence  to  Dresden,  to  pursue  his  studies  privately. 
The  oppressions  of  Greece  now  touched  his  heart,  and 
he  could  not  resist  her  appeals  for  help.  He  joined 
the  Philhellenes,  and  repaired  to  that  country  to  fight 
her  battles.  He  next  made  his  way  to  Rome  in  spite 
of  the  vigilance  of  the  police,  and  was  cordially  re- 
ceived by  the  great  historian  Niebuhr,  then  the  Prus- 
sian embassador,  and  made  an  inmate  of  his  family. 
From  Rome  he  went  to  his  native  city  Berlin,  and 


396        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

from  Berlin  he  fled  to  England.  He  had  now  left  his 
native  country,  and,  before  I  accompany  him  on  his 
voyage  to  the  New  World,  which  was  to  be  his 
future  home,  let  me  mark  some  of  the  more  inter- 
esting events  of  his  past  life.  He  belonged  to  the 
party  of  Liberals,  and  this  party  was  persecuted 
throughout  Germany.  When  a  student  at  Berlin,  he 
was  charged  with  being  a  Eevolutionist,  and  com- 
mitted to  prison.  Upon  his  return  to  Berlin  from  Rome, 
he  was  a  second  time  thrown  into  prison,  and  released 
by  the  influence  of  Niebuhr.  Being  threatened 
with  a  third  arrest  for  the  publication  of  certain  poems 
written  while  in  confinement,  he  fled  the  country  as 
the  only  means  of  escape.  Before  leaving  Germany, 
he  published  the  Journal  of  his  sojourn  in  Greece, 
which  he  wrote  in  Niebuhr's  house  in  Rome,  and 
which  has  the  distinction  of  being  the  first  book 
which  he  gave  to  the  public.  This  work  was  well 
received,  and  translated  into  several  languages.  In 
England  certain  tracts  and  contributions  to  German 
periodicals  embraced  pretty  much  his  published  labors. 
He  arrived  at  New  York  in  1827,  and  took  the  pre- 
liminary steps  at  once  to  become  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States.  He  made  up  his  mind  to  fix  his  resi- 
dence at  Boston.  He  was  a  stranger,  poor  and  friend- 
less, and  knew  not  what  to  do.  But  he  could  not 
remain  idle.  The  consciousness  of  being  in  a  land  of 
liberty,  where  there  were  no  restraints  upon  free 
inquiry,  where  the  press  was  not  muzzled,  and  where 
there  were  no  dungeons  for  the  expression  of  honest 
opinion,  gave  him  courage.  He  conceived  the  bold 
idea  of  writing  an  American  Encyclopedia.  I  have 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        397 

conversed  with  him  about  this  period  of  his  life,  and 
as  it  was  the  beginning  of  a  brilliant  career  of  author- 
ship in  this  country,  a  word  of  private  history  may 
not  be  without  interest.  One  afternoon  in  Boston, 
when  a  dark  cloud  was  resting  upon  his  mind,  he 
threw  himself  upon  his  bed,  and  indulged  in  profound 
reflection.  "  What  shall  I  do  ?"  was  the  overwhelming 
question.  He  felt  that  his  brain  was  the  only  thing 
which  he  could  draw  upon  for  support.  But  how  was 
that  brain  to  be  used  ?  In  what  channel  were  his 
labors  to  be  directed  ?  In  reading  the  lives  of  eminent 
scholars,  how  often  do  we  find  that  at  the  outset  they 
have  been  borne  down,  and  for  a  period  made  miser- 
able by  this  burdensome  and  heart-rending  thought! 
Many  a  genius,  under  similar  circumstances,  has  sunk 
never  to  rise  again.  A  volume  of  the  Conversationes- 
Lexicon  happened  to  lie  on  a  table  in  his  room.  As 
his  eye  rested  upon  it,  he  exclaimed  aloud,  "That's 
the  thing ;  I'll  write  an  Encyclopedia."  He  wrote  out 
a  plan  at  once,  carried  it  to  some  of  the  leading  men 
of  Boston,  and  they  gave  it  a  hearty  approval.  He 
left  immediately  for  Philadelphia,  contracted  with  the 
publishing  house  of  Carey  and  Lea,  and  sat  down  at 
once  to  the  performance  of  his  herculean  task.  The 
Encyclopedia  was  begun  in  1828,  and  finished  in  1831. 
From  Boston  he  went  to  New  York,  where  he  resided 
for  upwards  of  a  year.  He  was  not  idle,  but  published 
none  of  his  leading  works  during  that  period.  His 
next  residence  was  at  Philadelphia,  and  there  it  was 
his  fortune  to  become  acquainted  with  the  Hon.  Mr. 
Drayton,  formerly  of  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  and 
to  enjoy  the  respect  and  regards  of  that  distinguished 
25 


398        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

gentleman.  The  close  of  the  year  1834,  as  has  been 
previously  stated,  was  marked  by  an  almost  desperate 
condition  of  the  South  Carolina  College,  and  a  thorough 
re-organization  became  a  matter  of  necessity.  A 
temporary  arrangement  was  made  to  carry  on  the  Col- 
lege for  the  first  half  of  the  year  1835,  and  Dr.  Lieber, 
urged  by  his  friend,  Col.  Dray  ton,  left  for  Charleston 
with  letters  to  Governors  Hamilton  and  Hayne,  who 
at  once  became  his  ardent  supporters,  and  procured 
his  consent  to  have  himself  put  in  nomination  for  a 
place  in  the  new  Faculty.  June  5,  1835,  he  was 
unanimously  elected  Professor  of  History  and  Politi- 
cal Economy.  At  a  subsequent  period  Political  Phi- 
losophy was  added  to  his  department.  Most  of  his 
principal  works  were  written  when  he  held  a  Profes- 
sorship in  the  South  Carolina  College.  Among  these 
may  be  mentioned  his  Manual  of  Political  Ethics,  his 
Legal  and  Political  Hermeneutics,  or  Principles  of 
Interpretation  and  Construction  in  Law  and  Politics, 
his  Essays  on  Property  and  Labor,  and  his  Civil  Lib- 
erty and  Self-Government. 

In  1844  and  1848,  by  permission  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees,  he  visited  Europe,  and  while  in  Germany, 
published  certain  essays,  which  attracted  attention. 
I  have  mentioned  only  the  chief  works  of  Lieber; 
those  upon  which  his  fame  as  an  author  is  to  rest. 
Beside  these  he  published  various  tracts  and  essays  on 
different  subjects;  all  of  them  are  valuable,  and  several 
are  regarded  as  of  high  merit.  I  think  that  his 
reputation  as  a  thinker  and  author,  must  finally  rest, 
however,  upon  his  Ethics,  his  Hermeneutics,  his 
Labor  and  Property,  and  his  Civil  Liberty  and  Self- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        399 

Government.  I  would  not  have  the  reader  suppose 
that  I  attach  but  little  value  to  his  Encyclopedia. 
This  is  truly  a  great  work  of  its  kind.  It  met  a  pressing 
want.  Something  of  the  sort  was  much  needed,  and 
it  accomplished  the  entire  purpose  for  which  it  was 
designed.  Perhaps  a  more  acceptable  service  could 
not  have  been  rendered.  The  great  end  was  to 
diffuse  knowledge  in  a  country  whose  happiness  is 
founded  on  liberty,  and  whose  liberty  is  only  to  be 
preserved  by  widely  spread  information.  Though  the 
German  work  was  adopted  as  the  basis,  it  was  the 
leading  idea  to  make  it  an  American  Encyclopedia, 
by  embodying  in  it  all  the  valuable  information  re- 
lating to  America,  and  I  believe  that  this  purpose 
was  thoroughly  accomplished.  If  he  had  left  nothing 
else,  this  would  be  sufficient  to  secure  for  him  an 
enviable  reputation.  Perhaps  no  book  published  in 
this  country  ever  met  with  greater  favor  from  the 
public.  The  necessities  of  the  author  compelled  him 
to  part  with  the  copy-right,  and  others  have  received 
the  pecuniary  reward  for  his  labors.  But  he  had  a 
higher  compensation.  His  name  soon  became  known 
to  the  people  of  this  vast  confederacy,  and  he  was 
proud  in  the  consciousness  that  whatever  might  be 
done  in  the  future  in  this  department  of  literature,  he 
had  led  the  way,  and  could  not  be  forgotten.  But  the 
work  was  an  Encyclopedia,  and  the  world  is  apt  to 
believe  that  an  Encyclopedia  is  nothing  more  than 
an  alphabetic  digest,  and  arrangement  of  present 
science  and  knowledge.  They  regard  it  only  as  a 
monument  of  industry,  and  are  reluctant  to  accord  to 
the  author  the  honors  of  original  contribution. 


400        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Though  a  book  to  make  him  remembered,  it  was  not 
a  book  to  give  him  reputation  as  a  thinker,  and  his 
highest  fame,  therefore,  must  rest  upon  his  other 
publications.  Let  not  my  remarks  be  construed  into 
a  disparagement  of  this  truly  valuable  work.  It  soon 
became  in  truth  the  American  Encyclopedia,  and 
there  is.  perhaps,  little  risk  in  saying,  that  it  has  con- 
tributed more  to  the  diffusion  of  general  knowledge 
among  us,  than  any  book  which  was  ever  issued  from 
the  American  press.  It  is  not  my  design  to  give  a 
notice  of  his  many  works.  The  greatest  minds  of  our 
country  have  passed  judgment  upon  them,  and  he 
would  be  truly  a  bold  man  who  would  now  question 
their  rank  and  position.  The  Manual  of  Political 
Ethics,  the  Essay  on  Property  and  Labor,  the  Herme- 
neutics,  the  Treatise  on  Civil  Liberty  and  Self-Govern- 
ment, have  received  the'  highest  praise  from  Story, 
Kent,  Greenleaf,  Prescott,  Bancroft,  and  others  in  this 
country,  and  many  of  the  best  minds  of  Europe  have 
added  their  warmest  commendations.  His  works 
have  been  translated  into  several  of  the  languages  of 
Europe,  and  adopted  as  text-books  in  many  of  the 
highest  Colleges  and  Universities.  Perhaps  no  living 
author  is  more  frequently  referred  to  on  all  the  great 
questions  which  he  has  discussed.  Having  written  so 
much,  and  writfen  so  well,  and  in  all  exhibited  the 
spirit  of  the  true  philosophical  thinker,  there  are  few 
subjects  in  any  department  of  inquiry  which  cannot 
be  illustrated  by  an  appeal  to  his  works.  His  service 
in  this  respect  cannot  be  more  strikingly  set  forth 
than  by  mentioning  the  fact,  that  in  the  discussion  of 
the  Elder  question  in  the  Presbyterian  Review,  a 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        401 

clergyman  of  the  Presbyterian  denomination,  who  in 
genius  and  learning  is  surpassed  by  no  Divine  in  our 
country,  refers  to  him  in  language  of  highest  compli- 
ment. Can  it  be  doubted  that  he  is  one  of  the  great 
writers  of  the  19th  century!  Surely  not  when  the 
United  States,  England,  France  and  Germany,  all  unite 
in  his  praises,  and  have  bestowed  upon  him  the 
honors  which  are  reserved  only  for  the  most  successful 
authorship.  It  is  to  be  remarked,  that  he  has  grappled 
with  the  most  abstract  and  complex  problems,  and 
that  he  has  earned  his  rewards,  therefore,  in  the  fields 
of  highest  thought  and  reflection.  He  has  kept  com- 
pany with  master  minds,  and  vindicated  his  title  to 
fellowship  with  them.  The  nature  and  philosophy  of 
government1,  the  application  of  the  principles  of  ethics 
to  the  science  of  politics,  the  principles  of  interpreta- 
tion as  applicable  to  the  duties  of  the  law-giver,  and 
the  science  of  jurisprudence,  the  subjects  of  liberty 
labor,  and  property,  these  are  the  mighty  themes  to 
which  he  has  consecrated  his  talents  and  his  learning, 
and  on  which  he  has  ventured  to  teach  and  enlighten 
his  age.  In  such  a  field  no  common  mind,  no  common 
learning  could  have  achieved  any  measure  of  success. 
Known  as  he  is  throughout  this  country,  he  is  one  of 
a  few  American  citizens  who  have  an  enviable  Euro- 
pean reputation.  The  estimate  in  which  he  is  held  is 
exhibited  in  the  many  honors  and  distinctions  which 
have  been  conferred  upon  him  by  various  learned 
Societies  and  Universities.  I  will  only  say  here,  that 
Harvard  conferred  upon  him  the  degree  of  LL.  D.? 
that  the  French  Institute  elected  him  and  Archbishop 
Whately  on  the  same  day,  corresponding  members 


402        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

to  fill  two  vacancies,  and  that  the  King  of  Prussia 
offered  him  a  Chair  in  the  University  of  Berlin.  He 
is  enrolled  among  that  select  number  described  by 
Carlyle,  "whose  works  belong  not  wholly  to  any  age 
or  nation,  but  who,  having  instructed  their  own  con- 
temporaries, are  claimed  as  instructors  by  the  great 
family  of  mankind,  and  set  apart  for  many  centuries 
from  the  common  oblivion  which  soon  overtakes  the 
mass  of  authors,  as  it  does  the  mass  of  other  men." 

I  have  now  made  an  allusion  to  the  literary  labors  of 
Dr.  Lieber.  The  character  of  his  mind  is  well  dis- 
played in  his  works.  The  feature  which  perhaps 
would  first  strike  the  reader,  is  the  fullness  of  his 
information,  the  amount  of  his  laborious  research.  All 
that  is  known  of  his  subject  seems  to  have  been  stored 
away  in  his  capacious  brain,  and  he  deals  it  out  with 
a  generous  prodigality  that  looks  like  waste  and  ex- 
travagance. The  whole  encyclopedia  of  knowledge 
seems  to  be  at  his  command,  and  he  scatters  it  like 
one  who  feels  that  his  treasures  are  exhaustless.  His 
memory  then  is  of  the  largest  capacity.  And  will  any 
of  rny  readers  give  utterance  here  to  the  notion,  that 
this  great  memory  is  proof  that  he  possesses  no  extra- 
ordinary strength  and  vigor  of  understanding,  and 
that  he  is  wanting  in  high  original  powers  ?  It  is  a 
popular  idea,  but'  I  have  ever  regarded  it  as  the  refuge 
of  ignorance  and  indolence.  It  is  true  that  Lieber  has 
mastered  the  thoughts  of  others ;  that  in  the  particu- 
lar department  of  inquiry  to  which  he  has  devoted 
himself,  he  has  gathered  all  that  is  valuable.  But  is 
this  to  be  matter  for  reproach  ?  He  has  not  been  con- 
tent, however,  with  it:  he  is  an  earnest  and  bold 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        403 

thinker,  and  the  knowledge  and  the  speculations  of 
others  are  not  unfrequently  used  by  him  as  stepping- 
stones  to  conduct  him  to  still  greater  heights.  I 
know  that  I  am  not  mistaken  when  I  say  that  he 
is  no  servile  copyist,  no  mere  follower  in  the  foot- 
steps of  other  men.  On  the  contrary,  he  is  remark- 
able for  independence  of  thought,  whether  in  conver- 
sation or  in  writing,  and  is  prone  to  give  utterance  to 
his  opinions  now  and  then,  with  what  might  be  called 
offensive  dogmatism.  I  think  that  an  examination  ot 
any  one  of  his  leading  works  will  exhibit  very  promin- 
ently this  feature  in  his  mental  constitution.  He 
hesitates  not  to  assail  the  opinions  of  any  author, 
however  renowned,  and  is  ever  ready  to  make  battle 
with  the  most  formidable  antagonist.  In  this  he  dis- 
plays a  high  courage,  and  a  perfect  self-confidence. 
I  have  sometimes  suspected  that  he  carries  this  too 
far;  that  in  his  eagerness  for  battle,  he  may  fall 
short  of  full  justice  to  his  adversary.  In  all  his 
writings  he  shows  an  independence  and  a  love  ot 
liberty,  which  might  be  called  Miltonic.  Oppression, 
despotism  in  all  its  forms,  whether  of  the  mind  or  body, 
is  abhorrent  to  his  nature.  There  is  no  greater  lover 
of  law  and  of  order,  and  he  gives  his  love  to  Anglican, 
American  liberty,  or,  to  use  his  own  phrase,  to  In- 
stitutional liberty.  Feeling  the  foot  -of  the  oppressor 
when  but  a  youth,  immured  in  a  dungeon  because  of 
his  liberal  principles,  it  may  be  said  that  his  life  has 
been  one  continued  struggle  for  the  cause  of  freedom. 
Nothing  could  be  more  congenial  to  his  tastes,  his 
habits  of  thought  and  his  principles,  than  the  Institu- 
tions of  the  United  States,  and  feeling  all  the  protec- 


404        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

tion  of  a  well-regulated  government,  here  was  opened 
for  him  a  wide  field,  where  he  could  labor  unrestrained 
for  the  great  cause  to  which  he  had  consecrated  him- 
self with  such  devotion.  He  was  the  same  man;  he 
had  changed  his  .home,  but  not  his  principles.  Even 
in  his  adopted  country,  the  victory  was  not  complete. 
He  found  the  despotism  of  a  fettered  commerce,  of 
an  exorbitantly  taxed  industry,  and  a  consequent 
odious  discrimination  by  government.  Could  he  take 
any  other  side  than  the  side  of  Free  Trade  !  He  soon 
became  one  of  the  distinguished  champions  of  the 
cause,  and  had  the  high  honor  of  being  styled  by 
Robert  J.  Walker,  the  able  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
"the  philosophic  head  of  the  Free  Traders  of  the 
United  States."  But  this  is  not  all.  Our  infant 
country  is  rapidly  progressive.  From  causes  easily 
understood,  and  which  it  is  not  necessary  to  enumerate, 
we  are  exposed  to  peculiar  danger  from  the  rise  of 
every  possible  opinion  on  every  variety  of  subject,  the 
rapidity  with  which  they  are  propagated,  the  facility 
with  which  organizations  are  effected,  and  the  great 
power  which  they  acquire,  and  bring  to  bear  in  the 
issues  of  the  country.  Some  of  these  are  indigenous, 
while  the  seeds  of  others  are  imported  from  foreign 
lands,  and  find  here  a  genial  soil,  which  soon  stimu- 
lates them  to  germination.  We  have  our  Masonic 
and  Anti-Masonic  parties,  our  Seers  and  Prophets, 
our  Socialists,  Communists,  Agrarians,  Free  Love 
Societies,  Mormonists,  Women's  Rights  Parties, 
Polygamists,  Know  Nothings,  arid  a  long  list  of 
societies  and  associations,  in  too  many  instances 
based  upon  principles  utterly  subversive  of  right  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        405 

order,  and  which,  if  not  checked,  would  soon  bring 
about  anarchy  and  ruin.  That  man  knows  but  little 
of  the  nature  and  philosophy  of  the  human  mind,  and  of 
the  history  of  popular  delusions,  who  is  not  prepared  to 
concede  that  the  grossest  errors  and  superstitions,  the 
wildest  and  most  dangerous  hypotheses,  may  take 
root  and  rally  to  their  support  a  host  of  zealous  and 
devoted  advocates.  Of  this  whole  class  of  reckless 
innovators  and  insane  enthusiasts,  this  motlied  crew 
whose  sole  principle  of  cohesion  is  to  war  upon  law 
and  order,  and  to  unsettle  the  great  truths  which  have 
been  sanctified  'by  the  experience  of  ages,  Lieber  in- 
dulges a  feeling  of  abhorrence,  and  looks  upon  them 
as  enemies  of  progress  and  the  human  r,ace.  The 
tone  of  his  works  cannot  be  too  much  commended. 
The  spirit  of  justice,  of  morality  and  of  liberty,  breathes 
though  them  all.  But  the  effects  of  his  teachings  are 
not  limited  to  America.  The  press  has  borne  them 
to  the  despotisms  of  the  the  Old  World,  and  wherever 
there  is  a  struggle  for  the  rights  of  man,  he  may  be 
said  to  be  present  and  bearing  his  part. 

But  I  am  to  speak  of  him  as  a  Professor  in  the 
South  Carolina  College.  He  was  connected  with  it 
for  upwards  of  twenty  years,  and  closed  his  .labors  in 
December,  1856.  From  what  has  already  been  said, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  he  had  all  the  fullness  of 
learning  which  could  be  demanded.  With  the  details 
of  history,  with  the  speculations  and  systems  of  phi- 
losophy connected  with  the  departments  of  which 
he  had  charge,  it  is  hard  to  conceive  of  greater 
familiarity.  To  his  classes  he  poured  out  his  learning 
in  one  continued  stream ;  and  sometimes  it  confounded 


406        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

from  its  very  profusion.  Full  of  enthusiasm  in  the 
pursuit  of  knowledge,  elevating  it  almost  to  the  rank 
of  a  Divinity,  he  always  exhibited  the  greatest  earn- 
estness of  purpose.  Of  the  amount  of  his  labors 
in  the  College  it  is  not  easy  to  form  a  correct  estimate. 
His  whole  time,  with  but  little  relaxation,  was  devoted 
to  the  severest  toil.  From  his  study  to  his  class  room, 
from  his  class  room  to  his  study — this  was  his  life ; 
and  yet,  with  all  this  labor,  his  spirit  was  fresh,  and 
his  ardor  unabated.  Never  have  I  known  a  more 
insatiable  appetite,  and  he  was  ever  in  search  of  food 
for  its  gratification.  But,  not  to  indulge  in  meta- 
phor, I  have  never  met  a  more  inquiring  mind.  He 
was  always  in  quest  of  knowledge,  and  drew  it  from 
every  source.  Like  Franklin,  he  would  extract  it  even 
from  the  ignorant  and  unthinking,  and  thus  he  levied 
his  contributions  upon  all.  All  know  how  suggestive 
a  fact  may  be  to  a  thoughtful  mind,  and  what  beauti- 
ful superstructures  of  knowledge  have  been  reared 
from  the  humblest  beginnings.  Overflowing  with 
information  on  such  a  variety  of  subjects,  he  had  it  in 
his  power  to  render  a  particular  service  to  the  young 
men  of  the  College,  which  I  have  always  regarded  of 
immense,  value.  In  the  many  public  exercises  which 
they  are  required  to  perform,  such  as  speeches  at  the 
Exhibition,  at  Commencement,  before  the  Societies, 
and  Prize  Essays,  nothing  was  more  common  than  to 
seek  a  conversation  with  Lieber,  who  would  suggest 
the  plan  of  discussion,  and  point  to  the  best  sources 
of  information.  His  lectures  and  his  published  works, 
too,  furnished  a  mine  of  thought  and  knowledge,  from 
which  the  richest  treasures  were  drawn.  I  must  call 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        407 

attention  for  a  moment  to  the  arrangements  in  his 
lecture  room.  One  would  expect  to  find  maps,  and 
charts  and  globes,  in  the  room  of  a  Historical  Professor, 
as  these  are  the  indispensable  tools  with  which  he  has 
to  work.  There  is  nothing  in  this,  then,  to  distin- 
guish the  room  in  which  Lieber  met  his  classes.  But 
there  is  something  besides  which  rivets  the  attention, 
and  appeals  to  the  noblest  affections.  The  walls  are 
graced  with  busts  of  the  immortal  men  of  ancient  and 
modern  times,  and  thus  is  brought  to  bear  something  of 
the  power  of  a  real  presence.  Here  in  mute  but  ex- 
pressive silence  stand  Homer,  Demosthenes,  Socrates, 
Cicero,  Shakspeare,  Milton,  Kant,  Goethe,  Luther, 
Washington,  Alexander  Hamilton,  Humboldt  and 
William  Peiin.  Here,  too,  are  to  be  seen  the  illustrious 
trio,  Webster,  Calhoun .  and  Clay,  and  two  of  the 
favorite  public  servants  of  Carolina,  Preston  and 
McDuffie.  I  need  not  insist  that  these  are  not  to  be 
regarded  in  the  light  of  mere  ornament;  that  they 
speak  to  the  souls  of  all  who  look  upon  them,  and 
tend  to  arouse  into  activity  all  that  is  noble,  refining 
and  elevating. 

Dr.  Lieber's  resignation  was  accepted  by  the  Board 
of  Trustees  December,  1856,  and  the  following  pro- 
ceedings were  had  on  the  occasion : 

Whereas.,  The  resignation  of  Dr.  Lieber  has  been 
accepted  by  this  Board : 

Resolved,  That  the  Board  of  Trustees  have  a  full 
appreciation  of  the  eminent  learning  and  just  reputa- 
tion of  Dr.  Lieber. 

Resolved,  That  the  Board  tender  to  Dr.  Lieber  their 


408        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

hearty  and  sincere  good  wishes  for  his  future  welfare 
and  prosperity. 

It  is  worthy  of  note,  that  at  a  meeting  of  the  alumni 
of  the  College,  resolutions  of  a  most  complimentary 
character  were  adopted,  and  two  massive  silver  vessels 
presented  to  him  in  token  of  their  regard  and  admira- 
tion. I  have  now  brought  to  a  close  my  very  imper- 
fect notice  of  Lieber  as  a  Professor  in  the  South 
Carolina  College.  I  have  but  a  single  additional 
remark  to  make.  He  must  take  his  place  as  a  star  of 
the  first  magnitude.  In  all  future  time  the  State  will 
regard  his  name  as  one  of  the  brightest  and  most 
illustrious  on  the  roll  of  her  Faculty..  That  he 
honored  her  cherished  Institution,  that  he  spread  her 
fame  to  distant  lands,  and  contributed  in  largest 
measure  to  her  exaltation  and  glory,  none  will  ques- 
tion. He  will  live  forever  in  her  history,  and  never, 
never,  will  it  be  forgotten  that  her  chosen  temples  of 
learning  were  adorned  by  his  ministrations,  and  that 
he  devoted  the  best  portion  of  his  life  to  her  service 
and  honor. 

I  shall  now  dismiss  him  as  an  author  and  a  Pro- 
fessor, but  I  must  be  permitted  to  say  a  word  of 
him  as  a  man.  Associated  with  him  for  thirteen 
years  as  his  colleague  in  the  Faculty,  and  sustaining 
towards  him  relations  of  confidence  throughout  that 
period,  I  think  that  I  have  had  ample  opportunities 
for  forming  a  right  estimate,  and  that  my  judgment 
is  entitled  to  some  measure  of  value.  He  knows  his 
strength,  and  never  distrustful  of  his  powers,  always 
exhibits  a  spirit  of  bold  self-reliance.  In  the  ardor  of 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        409 

discussion  he  may  become  too  dogmatic  and  peremp- 
tory, and  act  like  one  who  never  shows  mercy,  or  "  gives 
quarters."  This  may  create  the  impression  that  his 
character  is  cast  in  too  stern  a  mould  to  allow  of  the 
existence  of  the  tender  and  sympathetic  affections. 
But  this  is  a  mistake.  His  heart  is  as  large  as  his 
brain,  and  endued  with  a  tender  sensibility.  He 
can  carry  out  the  lesson  of  the  poet : 


to  feel  another's  woe, 


To  hide  the  fault  I  see." 

I  know  that  he  is  kindly-natured,  free  to  forgive,  and 
incapable  of  malice.  His  personal  morality  is  without 
reproach,  and  he  illustrates  in  his  life  the  doctrines  so 
impressively  inculcated  in  his  published  works.  He 
is  fond  of  the  beautiful,  and  is  arrested  in  admiration 
whenever  it  is  presented.  Is  it  beneath  the  dignity 
of  my  subject  to  say  that  he  will  almost  steal  a  flower, 
that  he  may  send  it  with  a  complimentary  note  to  a 
young  lady!  He  loves  to  look  out  upon  a  May-day 
when  the  earth  teems  with  buds  and  blossoms,  and 
how  responsive  is  his  heart  with  its  hopes  and  its 
joys !  Shall  I  add  that  he  has  a  youthful  fondness  for 
the  society  of  girls,  and  that  no  young  gallant  can 
surpass  him  on  such  occasions  in  light  and  airy  con- 
versation. But  I  must  not  forget  his  sympathy  with 
little  children ;  "  those  flowers  that  make  the  hovel's 
earthen  floor  delightful  as  the  glades  of  paradise." 
He  will  play  with  them  by  the  hour,  and  leading  the 
way,  forget  his  manhood,  and  become  as  one  of  them. 
Does  not  this  speak  volumes  for  his  heart?  Shall  I 
say  more?  He  has  left  the  South  Carolina  College, 


410        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

but  his  affections  still  linger  around  it.  He  loves  the 
trees  under  whose  shades  he  walked  for  twenty  years, 
the  lecture  room  where  he  so  long  labored  in  the  cause 
of  knowledge;  and  the  ivy  which  he  planted,  and 
which  now  spreads  itself  in  rich  luxuriance  over  the 
house  which  he  occupied,  has  fastened  its  tendrils 
upon  his  heart,  and  is  entwined  in  everlasting  em- 
brace around  it. 

But  I  have  concluded  what  I  had  to  say.  Dr. 
Lieber  is  residing  at  present  in  New  York,  and  fills 
the  Professorship  of  History  and  Political  Science  in 
the  School  of  Jurisprudence  of  the  Columbia  Univer- 
sity, to  which  he  was  unanimously  elected  May  18, 
1857.  Here  is  a  wide  field  congenial  to  his  tastes  and 
attainments.  He  is  in  the  vigor  of  life,  and  to  human 
eye  many  years  of  labor  are  yet  before  him.  Long 
may  he  live  to  instruct  the  youth  of  America,  and  to 
scatter  over  the  world  the  fruits  of  his  genius  and 
learning ! 

The  Faculty  assembled  on  the  first  Monday  in  Janu- 
ary, 1857,  and  though  noise  and  riot  were  exhibited 
from  the  commencement  of  the  term,  the  offenders 
escaped  the  vigilance  of  the  officers  until  the  meeting 
of  February  2,  when  an  investigation  of  a  great  dis- 
turbance in  the  Campus  was  commenced.  The  riot 
was  continued  for  two  successive  nights,  and  was 
marked  by  tumultuous  noise  and  a  tin-pan  serenade  in 
front  of  the  President's  house.  .  Four  of  the  reported 
students  were  suspended.  On  the  last  Sunday  in 
April,  a  disturbance  occurred  in  the  Chapel  during  the 
exercises  of  public  worship.  In  the  progress  of  the 
investigation  it  assumed  a  serious  appearance,  and 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        411 

three  members  of  the  Junior  class  were  suspended. 
The  sentence  was  remitted  on  petition  of  the  class, 
and  the  Faculty,  in  their  resolution,  placed  it  upon 
certain  conditions.  It  was  ordered  that  the  resolution 
be  communicated  to  the  class,  as  it  was  designed  in 
answer  to  the  petition.  It  was  not  communicated; 
the  suspended  students  being  simply  informed  by  the 
President  that  they  were  restored.  Whether  the  Com- 
mittee of  the  class  was  unreasonable  or  not  in  its 
exactions,  I  will  not  here  decide ;  I  simply  state  the 
fact,  that  a  demand  was  made  for  the  conditions  on 
which  their  class-mates  were  pardoned.  The  details 
of  the  difficulty  have  little  or  no  general  interest,  and 
I  will  not  trouble  the  reader  with  a  narrative  of  them. 
The  President  and  the  Committee,  and  many  other 
members  of  the  Junior  Class,  had  repeated  inter- 
views, and  he  proposed  terms  of  accommodation, 
which  were  rejected.  I  refer  now  to  a  period  anterior 
to  the  passage  of  the  resolution  by  the  Faculty.  The 
Committee  was  composed  of  young  men  of  rare  talents 
and  acuteness,  and  I  am  sure,  that  without  suggestion 
from  any  quarter,  they  indulged  the  suspicion  that 
the  petition  was  granted  on  terms  which  they  had 
repudiated.  There  was,  in  consequence,  the  highest 
excitement,  and  diffusing  itself  among  the  other 
classes,  there  were  few  students  who  did  not  partici- 
pate in  it.  Thus  matters  stood  at  the  meeting  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  May  6.  We  were  upon  a  volcano 
which  was  heaving  and  tossing,  and  threatening 
every  moment  to  burst  forth  with  terrific  fury.  The 
order  in  the  class  room  was  perfect,  and  the  exercises 
of  the  College  received  the  usual  attention.  The 


412        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

President  made  his  report,  and  it  is  important  in  a 
consideration  of  the  causes  which  produced  the  disor- 
ders to  which  attention  has  been  directed,  and  which  in 
one  short  month  were  to  terminate  his  administration, 
that  I  advert  briefly  to  his  testimony  in  a  certain  par- 
ticular. The  reader  will  remember  that,  in  his  report 
of  May,  1856,  he  says  that  the  Faculty  gave  him  "a 
friendly  and  steady  support ;"  and  I  have  now  to  add, 
that  in  the  present  report,  after  a  high  praise  of  the 
new  Professors,  he  remarks  that  "  the  other  Professors 
have  manifested  their  usual  zeal  and  devotion  to  the 
interests  of  the  College,  and  I  most  sincerely  congratu- 
late the  Trustees  on  the  sound  and  healthy  condition 
of  the  College."  Thus  we  have  the  uniform  testimony 
of  the  President  to  the  zeal  and  fidelity  of  the  Faculty, 
and  their  cordial  support  of  his  authority,  from  the 
moment  of  his  entrance  upon  his  office  to  within  one 
month  of  the  great  catastrophe.  The  history  of  his 
administration  shows  the  existence  of  a  rebellious 
temper  among  the  young  men  from  its  commence- 
ment, and  who,  after  such  testimony,  can  hold  the 
Faculty  responsible  for  its  introduction.  I  state  what 
I  believe  when  I  say,  that  but  for  the  extraordinary 
efforts  made  by  them,  his  administration  would  have 
terminated  in  a  month.  This  could  be  made  manifest 
by  a  statement  of  particular  facts,  but  I  am  willing 
to  leave  it  as  I  have  now  presented  it.  At  this  meet- 
ing the  President  submitted  the  estimate  for  the 
introduction  of  gas-light  into  the  College.  An  appro- 
priation for  the  purpose  was  made,  and  the  credit  of 
the  measure  is  due  to  his  zeal  and  energy.  At  this 
meeting  of  the  Board,  the  preparatory  requisitions  for 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        413 

admission  to  the  Freshman  Class  were  so  altered  as 
to  require  only  Jacob's  Greek  Reader,  two  Books  o± 
Xenophon's  Cyropsedia,  and  the  first  two  Books  of 
Homer's  Iliad.  May  8,  the  Board  adjourned  sine  die. 
I  turn  now  to  the  Minutes  of  the  Faculty.  I  have 
already  recorded  that  before  the  meeting  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  certain  students  had  been  sus- 
pended for  a  disorder  in  the  Chapel,  and  that  they 
had  been  restored  upon  conditions  to  which  the  Com- 
mittee of  the  class  took  exceptions.  I  have  now  to 
remark,  that  from  day  to  day  interviews  took  place 
between  the  President  and  the  Committee,  with  no 
other  effect  than  to  produce  new  causes  of  irritation. 
The  issue  was  of  a  personal  character.  That  he  was 
sincerely  desirous  of  restoring  peace  to  the  College, 
that  he  labored  for  its  best  interest,  according  to  his 
conception  of  it,  I  never  entertained  a  doubt.  It  was 
his  misfortune  to  entangle  himself  in  his  negotiations 
with  the  Committee,  and  to  make  upon  them,  and 
through  them,  upon  the  class  and  the  students  at  large, 
unfavorable  impressions.  The  Professors  differed  with 
him  in  respect  to  certain  particulars.  They  had  cer- 
tainly a  right  to  think  for  themselves,  and  surely  none 
will  think  the  worse  of  them  for  its  exercise.  But 
whatever  may  have  been  the  extent  of  these  differ- 
ences, sure  I  am  that  they  had  no  unkind  feelings 
towards  him,  and  that  they  were  directed  solely  by  a 
sense  of  duty  to  themselves  and  the  College.  Even 
after  grave  issues  of  fact  were  raised,  he  received  this 
assurance  from  one  member  of  the  Faculty,  who  said 
that  he  spoke  not  only  for  himself,  but  he  believed  for 
all  his  colleagues.  The  difficulty  between  him  and 
26 


414        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

the  Committee  of  the  Junior  Class  was  assuming 
hourly  a  more  serious  aspect ;  all  efforts  at  adjust- 
ment failed,  and  finally  the  whole  College  became  a 
party,  and  assumed  towards  him  a  belligerent  atti- 
tude. The  Junior  Class  refused  to  attend  his  reci- 
tations, and  in  succession  all  the  classes  took  the  same 
position. 

At  a  previous  meeting  of  the  Faculty,  the  Presi- 
dent had  treated  the  Professors  with  such  discourtesy, 
that  they  felt  it  their  duty  to  adjourn  to  the  study  of 
one  of  their  number.  It  was  an  extraordinary  state 
of  things.  There  was  a  Faculty  without  a  head ;  what 
was  to  be  done  ?  The  Professors  resolved  unanimously, 
after  consultation  with  certain  leading  gentlemen  of 
the  State,  that  it  was  an  occasion  which  demanded  a 
convocation  of  the  Board  of  Trustees.  The  President 
was  informed  of  the  opinion  of  the  Professors,  and 
asked  to  call  a  meeting.  He  declined  to  answer,  and 
the  state  of  the  College  was,  therefore,  communicated 
to  the  President  of  the  Board  in  a  formal  letter  signed 
by  all  the  Professors.  The  Faculty  met  the  next 
day  at  the  call  of  the  President;  he  retracted  the 
offensive  words  used  by  him  at  the  last  meeting,  and 
now  gave  official  information  that  he  had  taken  the 
necessary  steps  to  convene  the  Trustees.  It  is  not  to 
be  disguised  that  the  President  and  Professors  were 
now  separated;  that  it  was  known  to  the  students, 
and  that  the  whole  College  was  in  a  state  of  high 
excitement.  He  reported  the  Junior  Class  after  the 
call  of  the  Board,  and  the  Faculty,  sustained  by  the 
opinion  of  some  of  the  leading  Trustees,  concluded 
that  it  was  best  to  suspend  action,  and  to  await,  quietly 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        415 

the  determination  of  the  supreme  authority.  The 
last  meeting  of  the  Faculty  was  held  June  8,  and  no 
one  cUn  read  the  proceedings  without  the  conviction 
that  they  had  the  liveliest  sense  of  duty,  and  were 
most  anxious  to  discharge  it.  The  record  bears  wit- 
ness that  three  of  them  besides  the  President  declared 
their  willingness  to  proceed  at  once  against  the  Junior 
Class,  if  the  President  desired  it.  A  distinct  resolution 
to  that  effect  was  offered  by  a  member,  and  it  was 
made  to  give  way  to  another,  presented  as  a  substitute, 
which  referred  the  matter  to  the  Board,  on  the  grounds 
that  such  a  course  was  necessary  to  keep  the  peace, 
to  allay  excitement,  and  was  but  an  act  of  courtesy 
to  the  Board  itself;  and,  according  to  the  record,  the 
resolution  of  the  Faculty  was  adopted  unanimously. 
This  was  the  state  of  things  when  the  Board  assembled 
June  10.  The  President  made  a  report  of  upwards 
of  twenty  folio  pages,  and  in  it  he  assails  with  bitter- 
ness many  members  of  the  Faculty.  He  now  takes 
the  position  for  the  first  time  that  certain  Professors 
had  been  false  to  him,  and  traces  this  want  of  fidelity 
back  to  the  first  year  of  his  administration.  Let  me 
remind  the  reader  of  his  explicit  testimony  to  the 
cordial  and  zealous  support  of  his  authority,  and  of 
the  best  interests  of  the  College,  from  the  day  on 
which  he  entered  upon  his  office  to  within  one  month 
of  the  date  of  his  present  report.  I  have  the  materials 
for  the  refutation  of  these  charges,  but  I  pass  them 
by  with  the  remark,  that  the  Professors  found  a  vindi- 
cation in  the  final  action  of  the  Board  of  Trustees 
some  months  afterwards.  For  the  present  the  Board 
adopted  the  views  of  the  President,  to  the  extent,  at 


416        HISTOKY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

least,  of  holding  them  responsible  with  him  for  the 
misgovernment  of  the  College.  June  11,  it  was  re- 
solved that  the  Board  deems  it  necessary  to  the 
interests  of  the  College  to  re-organize  the  government, 
and  that  the  President  and  Professors  be  requested 
forthwith  to  resign  their  offices,  and  that  the 
Secretary  communicate  this  resolution  forthwith.  At 
an  adjourned  meeting  on  the  same  day,  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Board  communicated  the  resignation 
of  the  entire  Faculty.  Professors  John  LeConte, 
Joseph  LeConte  and  Rivers,  were  immediately  re- 
elected  to  their  respective  Chairs,  and  Mr.  Leslie 
McCandless  was  elected  to  the  Professorship  of  Roman 
Literature,  and  the  Reverend  Whitefoord  Smith  to  the 
Professorship  of  Moral  Philosophy,  Sacred  Literature 
and  Criticism.  The  other  Professorships  arid  the 
Chair  of  the  Presidency  were  left  vacant.  The  Board 
adjourned  to  meet  the  first  Wednesday  after  the 
second  Monday  in  September.  The  summer  was  one 
of  unprecedented  excitement  throughout  the  State. 
Never  since  its  foundation  did  the  College  receive 
such  a  measure  of  attention.  The  late  difficulty,  the 
action  of  the  Board,  schemes  for  re-organization  with 
fundamental  changes,  these  furnished  topics  for  dis- 
cussion in  the  newspapers  throughout  the  State,  and 
from  the  sea-board  to  the  mountains  the  cry  was  the 
College,  the  College.  The  Professors  took  no  part  in 
these  discussions.  Conscious  of  the  purity  of  their 
motives,  and  the  integrity  of  their  conduct,  they  looked 
with  confidence  to  the  sober  second  thought  of  the 
Trustees  and  the  public.  Pursuant  to  adjournment, 
the  Board  assembled  September  16.  A  memorial 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        417 

from  Mr.  M'Cay,  the  late  President,  was  presented, 
and  after  the  reading  had  commenced,  it  was  sus- 
pended, and  the  memorialist  was,  by  resolution,  given 
leave  to  withdraw  it.  September  17,  a  letter  was 
submitted  from  the  Reverend  Whitefoord  Smith,  de- 
clining the  Professorship  to  which  he  had  been  elected. 
The  Reverend  Dr.  Thornwell  was  elected  President 
of  the  College,  but  being  present  declined  acceptance. 
The  Reverend  Thomas  A.  Hoyt  was  elected  Professor 
of  Logic,  Rhetoric  and  Philosophy  of  the  Mind.  The 
Board  adjourned  at  half-past  3  o'clock  to  meet  at  7 
o'clock.  At  this  meeting  the  Reverend  J.  L.  Reynolds 
was  elected  Professor  of  Roman  Literature,  the 
Reverend  R.  "W.  Barnwell  was  elected  Professor  of 
Moral  Philosophy,  Sacred  Literature  and  Criticism. 
Several  Unsuccessful  ballotings  for  the  Presidency  now 
took  place,  in  which  the  Hon.  A.  B.  Longstreet, 
General  Jamison  and  Dr.  LaBorde,  received  votes. 
A  member  of  the  Board  declined  for  the  Reverend 
Mr.  Hoyt,  who  had  not  been  notified  of  his  election, 
the  acceptance  of  the  Professorship  to  which  he  had 
been  appointed.  A  ballot  was  now  had  for  the  Chair 
of  Logic,  Rhetoric  and  Philosophy  of  the  Mind,  and 
Dr.  LaBorde  was  elected.  Professor  Pelham  was  then 
elected  to  the  Chair  of  History,  Political  Philosophy 
and  Political  Economy.  The  Faculty,  by  resolution, 
were  authorized  to  appoint  a  Chairman.  Thus  termi- 
nated the  difficulty;  a  termination  which  restored 
every  officer  to  the  Faculty  except  the  late  President. 
I  now  part  with  Mr.  M'Cay,  and  I  must  avail  my- 
self of  the  occasion  to  make  one  or  two  remarks.  I 
must  regard  the  restoration  of  the  Professors  somewhat 


418        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

in  the  light  of  a  vindication.  Surely  the  Board  would 
not  have  re-elected  men  who  had  "  suspended  the  execu- 
tion of  the  laws,"  and  proved  themselves  unworthy  of 
the  trust  confided  to  them.  The  Professors  were 
not  banded  together,  as  he  conceived,  for  his  destruc- 
tion. They  did  all  that  was  possible  to  maintain 
his  authority,  and  when  they  saw  that  his  administra- 
tion must  terminate,  they  indulged  the  hope  that  he 
would  leave  the  College  in  peace  and  quiet,  and 
exerted  their  best  influence  with  the  students  to  arrest 
particular  proceedings,  which  were  calculated  to  do  him 
injury.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  he  ever  accepted 
the  Presidency.  His  own  testimony,  as  already  given 
is,  that  his  election  "met  with  violent  opposition  in 
the  State,  in  the  public  press,  in  the  City  of  Columbia, 
and  among  the  Trustees;"  and  I  have  already  adverted 
to  his  distinct  declaration,  that  the  Professors  gave 
him  a  uniform  and  friendly  support  until  one  month 
before  his  disconnection.  The  truth  is,  that  the  oppo- 
sition was  invincible,  and  instead  of  diminishing,  it 
grew  with  time,  until  at  last  it  was  madness  to  resist 
it.  Nothing  could  be  done,  for  the  case  was  hopeless. 
Had  he  remained  in  his  Professor's  Chair,  he  would 
have  discharged  his  duties  with  satisfaction  to  the 
people  of  the  State.  It  is  an  act  of  simple  justice  to 
declare  my  certain  knowledge  of  the  fact,  that  the 
idea  of  succeeding  to  the  Presidency  did  not  originate 
with  Mr.  M'Cay,  but  that  it  was  suggested  by  others. 
It  was  not  until  others  had  declined  his  own  earnest 
solicitations  to  be  put  in  nomination,  and  he  was  invited 
by  persons  high  in  authority,  that  he  thought  of  it. 
It  cannot  then  be  said  in  truth,  that  he  was  in  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        419 

first  instance  a  seeker  of  the  office.  It  was  natural 
that  he  should  feel  flattered  by  the  compliment,  and 
not  very  extraordinary  in  the  history  of  the  race, 
that  the  trials  and  difficulties  by  which  the  future  was 
encompassed,  should  be  obscured  by  the  promptings 
of  an  ambition  which  aims  at  higher  position,  and 
seeks  a  larger  power  and  influence. 

I  have  now  concluded  what  I  had  to  say  of  the 
College  when  Mr.  M'Cay  presided  over  it.  I  trust 
that  the  reader  will  acquit  me  of  all  improper  feeling 
in  the  matter.  I  have  labored  to  do  him  full  justice. 
I  have  no  motive  to  do  him  an  injury.  I  am  only 
concerned  to  lay  open  the  causes  of  his  failure  so  far 
as  is  necessary  to  a  defence  of  the  Professors.  This 
might  have  been  done  by  another  line  of  argument, 
but  I  preferred  that  the  facts  should  speak  for  them- 
selves. The  subject  is  burdensome  to  me;  I  feel 
relief  in  getting  rid  of  it;  and  I  am  almost  prepared 
to  say  with  Johnson  in  the  memorable  words  which 
conclude  the  preface  to  his  Dictionary,  that  "  I  dismiss 
it  with  frigid  tranquility,  having  little  to  fear  or  hope 
from  censure  or  from  praise." 

October  5,  the  Faculty  assembled,  and  Dr.  LaBorde 
was  appointed  Chairman.  On  motion  it  was  resolved 
that  the  Chairman  be  requested  to  prepare  and  submit, 
at  the  next  meeting,  rules  for  the  transaction  of 
business  during  the  sessions  of  the  Faculty.  The  dis- 
tinguished Principal  of  Mount  Zion  Academy  having 
recently  died,  many  of  his  students  were,  on  applica- 
tion, admitted  to  an  examination  for  admission  to  the 
College.  The  examination  was  concluded  on  Tuesday, 
12  o'clock,  and  at  a  meeting  of  the  Faculty  on  the 


420        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

afternoon  of  the  same  day,  about  twenty  were  received. 
The  order  of  exercises  was  re-arranged,  and  the  course 
of  studies  in  the  several  departments  entered  upon  with 
great  zeal  and  vigor  by  the  respective  Professors.  The 
Faculty  were  fully  alive  to  the  responsibilities  of  their 
position,  and  knowing  that  the  College  had  just  passed 
through  a  terrible  crisis  in  which  many  of  its  best 
friends  were  made  to  tremble  for  its  safety,  they  deter- 
mined, if  possible,  to  restore  it  to  the  public  confidence. 
It  is  but  an  act  of  justice  to  the  students  to  add,  that 
they  participated  fully  in  this  feeling,  and  gave  a 
cordial  support  to  their  officers.  The  tone  of  senti- 
ment among  them  was  high,  the  spirit  of  study  was 
remarkable,  and  offences  of  a  serious  grade  were 
unknown.  The  classes  acquitted  themselves  well  at 
the  public  examinations,  and  the  Chairman,  in  his 
Annual  Keport,  had  the  pleasure  of  making  a  favor- 
able representation  of  the  College  in  every  particular. 
Charles  P.  Pelham  was  born  in  Marlborough  Dis- 
trict, South  Carolina,  November  14,  1816.  He  went 
to  school  at  Bennettsville  and  Cheraw,  previously  to  his 
admission  to  the 'South  Carolina  College.  His  teach- 
ers at  Bennettsville  were  the  Rev.  Donald  McQueen 
and  Duncan  McLaurin,  and  at  Cheraw,  T.  E.  B. 
Pegues,  Rev.  Donald  McQueen,  and  Rev.  James 
H.  Thornwell.  Mr.  Pelham  entered  the  Sophomore 
Class  of  the  South  Carolina  College  February  13, 
1836,  and  graduated  in  December  1838,  with  distinc- 
tion. Immediately  upon  his  graduation,  he  was  elected 
by  the  Faculty  Tutor  in  the  Department  of  Languages. 
In  June,  1843,  he  vacated  the  office.  In  May,  1844,  he 
sailed  for  Europe,  and  visited  England,  France,  Switzer- 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        421 

land,  Italy  and  Greece.  While  in  Europe  he  was 
an  industrious  traveller,  and  very  few  persons,  within 
the  same  period  of  time,  saw  so  much,  and  visited  so 
many  interesting  localities.  I  will  not  enumerate 
them,  but  content  myself  by  remarking,  that  there  are 
very  few  places  in  Italy  particularly,  remarkable  in 
history,  which  were  overlooked.  In  August,  1845,  he 
sailed  for  New  York.  That  such  a  tour  must  have 
been  productive  of  great  benefit  to  him,  cannot  be 
questioned.  At  his  mature  age,  and  familiar  with 
the  great  authors  of  antiquity,  it  may  be  readily 
believed  that  it  was  truly  a  school  of  wisdom,  and  in 
a  very  special  sense  important  to  the  life  which  he 
was  destined  to  lead  upon  his  return  to  Carolina.  I 
think  that  for  the  period  assigned  to  his  stay  in  Europe, 
he  could  not  have  employed  his  time  better.  In 
December,  1845,  he  was  called  to  the  Classical  Depart- 
ment of  Mount  Zion  College,  at  Winnsborough,  which 
position  he  left  in  the  following  October.  November 
30,  1846,  he  was  elected  Professor  of  Roman  Litera- 
ture in  the  South  Carolina  College,  and  December 
28,  took  his  seat  with  the  Faculty.  September  16, 
1857,  he  was  elected  to  the  Chair  of  History,  Political 
Philosophy,  and  Political  Economy,  and  his  connec- 
tion with  the  College  terminated  November  25  of 
that  year.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  he  was  a  Pro- 
fessor for  eleven  years.  That  his  labors  were  of 
great  value,  and  that  they  deserve  to  be  held  in  last- 
ing remembrance,  cannot  be  questioned.  He  was  a 
careful,  pains-taking,  indefatigable  teacher,  and  his 
knowledge  of  his  department  was  minute  and  critical. 
As  a  disciplinarian,  he  was  one  of  the  best  which  the 


422        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

College  ever  had.  He  maintained  the  most  perfect 
order  in  his  class-room,  and  never  passed,  without 
rebuke,  the  slightest  violation  of  propriety  or  decorum. 
He  certainly  possessed,  in  an  uncommon  degree,  the 
rare  talent  so  important  to  the  teacher,  of  controlling 
youth  when  before  him  for  instruction.  At  the  meet- 
ings of  the  Faculty,  he  took  his  position,  whenever  the 
occasion  demanded,  with  singular  firmness  and  inde- 
pendence. The  key  to'  this  is  to  be  found  in  his  love  of 
truth  and  justice,  and  in  the  promptings  of  a  delicate 
and  enlightened  conscience.  Professor  Pelham  has 
published  little.  I  am  not  aware  of  anything  but  an 
article  in  the  Southern  Quarterly  Review  for  Septem- 
ber, 1856,  on  Cicero  de  Officiis.  And  who  that  has  read 
it  does  not  regret  that  he  has  not  written  more  ! 
This,  of  itself,  is  sufficient  to  prove  that  he  is  a  master 
of  style,  and  thoroughly  imbued  with  the  true  spirit 
of  classical  literature.  Since  his  retirement  from  the 
College,  he  has  become  the  Proprietor  and  Editor  of 
the  Southern  Guardian,  a  daily  newspaper  published 
in  the  City  of  Columbia,  and  is  now  engaged  in  the 
arduous  labors  of  his  exacting  and  responsible  profes- 
sion. To  him  the  life  was  entirely  new,  and  wholly 
diverse  from  his  previous  pursuits  ;  but  every  enlight- 
ened reader  must  perceive  the  ability  with  which  he 
conducts  his  paper,  and  the  inviting  classical  aspect 
which  he  not  unfrequently  gives  to  topics  of  current 
discussion  in  the  press  of  the  country. 

I  turn  to  the  proceedings  of  the  Board  of  Trustees. 
November  25,  Hon.  A.  B.  Longstreet  was  elected 
President  of  the  College.  It  was  resolved  that  a 
new  arrangement  of  the  departments  of  instruction 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        423 

be  adopted,  with  special  reference  to  the  convenience 
and  fitness  of  the  President  elect.  The  Board 
assigned  to  the  President,  History,  Political  Philoso- 
phy, Political  Economy  and  Elocution.  November 
27,  Charles  S.  Venable  was  elected  to  the  Chair  of 
Mathematics;  Joseph  LeConte  to  the  Chair  of  Chem- 
istry, Mineralogy  and  Geology;  John  LeConte  to  the 
Chair  of  Natural  and  Mechanical  Philosophy;  W. 
J.  Eivers  to  the  Chair  of  Gree'k  Literature;  R.  W. 
Barn  well  to  the  Chair  of  Moral  Philosophy,  Sacred 
Literature  and  Evidences  of  Christianity;  J.  L.  Rey- 
nolds to  the  Chair  of  Roman  Literature,  and  M. 
LaBorde  to  the  Chair  of  Logic,  Rhetoric,  and  Phi- 
losophy of  the  Mind.  Dr.  LaBorde  was  requested  by 
the  Board  of  Trustees  to  preside  at  Commencement, 
confer  the  degrees,  and  deliver  the  usual  Bacca- 
laureate Address.  After  the  Commencement,  the 
Faculty  proceeded  to  the  examination  of  applicants. 
Fifty-five  students  were  admitted,  which,  in  addition 
to  the  number  already  in  College,  made  a  total  of 
about  200  for  the  year  1858.  The  College  was  now 
adjourned  for  the  Christmas  festivities.  It  was 
restored  to  the  confidence  of  the  public ;  the  night 
which  had  so  long  rested  upon  it  had  departed,  and  a 
day  full  of  brightness  and  splendor  was  bursting  upon 
it.  The  echoes  of  the  thunder  had  died  away,  the 
" elemental  strife"  had  ceased,  and  a  calm  serenity 
spread  over  the  land.  The  future  was  again  pro- 
phetic of  glory  and  honor;  and  how  full  of  significance 
that  this  occurred  upon  the  advent  of  Christmas; 
merry,  joyous  Christmas,  when  the  heart  is  attuned 
to  gladness,  and  no  sound  is  heard  save  the  sound  of 


424        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

"mirth  and  music,  and  the  merry  twinkling  feet !"  It 
was  the  season  of  the  great  festival,  when  the  best 
and  purest  affections  are  brought  into  activity ;  the 
season  of  happy  re-unions,  when  father  and  son, 
mother  and  daughter,  meet  in  love,  and  when  the 
world  and  its  cares  are  made  to  give  way  to  purer  and 
more  hallowed  thoughts,  and  are  buried  in  forgetful- 
ness. 

And  now,  I  may  ask  in  conclusion,  has  the  College 
accomplished  the  great  end  for  which  it  was  established  ? 
Has  it  done  its  work  in  educating  the  people  of  Caro- 
lina? There  can  be  but  one  response  to  these  ques- 
tions. Every  part  of  the  State,  and  the  Up-Country 
particularly,  has  derived  from  it  an  amount  of  benefit 
which  cannot  be  estimated  by  dollars  and  cents.  If 
it  be  true,  as  I  think  it  is,  that  South  Carolina  has 
rivalled  her  most  favored  sisters  in  virtue,  intelligence 
and  public  spirit,  much  of  it  is  due  to  her  College.  If 
her  Governors,  her  Senators  and  Representatives  to 
Congress,  and  her  Judiciary,  have  shed  a  bright  lustre 
upon  her  name,  the  College  will  point  to  the  larger 
number  of  them  as  having  been  trained  in  her  walls, 
and  thereby  fitted  for  their  high  positions.  I  am 
carried  away  by  no  blind  enthusiasm  when  I  say,  that 
South  Carolina  never  could  have  been  what  she  is, 
without  it.  All  honor  to  the  men  who  conceived  the 
idea  of  a  great  State  Institution,  and  gave  it  exis- 
tence. But  its  benefits  are  not  limited  to  South  Caro- 
lina alone.  Her  alumni  are  to  be  found  throughout 
the  South- Western  States,  and  no  more  is  claimed  for 
them  than  they  deserve  when  I  add,  that  if  they  have 
not  founded  new  empires,  they  have  contributed  largely 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE.        425 

to  their  glory  and  progress.  The  College  has  had  suc- 
cess ;  it  has  dispensed  "  a  complete  and  generous  educa- 
tion; that  which  fits  a  man  to  perform  justly,  skilfully 
and  magnanimously,  all  the  offices,  both  private  and 
public,  of  peace  and  war."  It  has  certainly  realized  to 
as  large  an  extent  as  could  have  been  anticipated,  the 
wish  expressed  by  the  General  Assembly,  that  it 
would  prevent  "  a  resort  to  Colleges  in  other  States," 
and  afford  to  the  youth  of  the  State  the  means  of 
education  and  literary  impulsion  within  her  own 
borders.  While  all  have  cause  to  rejoice  on  account 
of  its  past  history  and  present  condition,  there  may 
be  danger  in  great  organic  changes,  or  very  serious 
innovations  upon  its  established  order  and  polity. 
It  must  be  guarded  alike  against  a  too  great  exclusive- 
ness  on  the  one  hand,  and  a  too  great  popularization 
on  the  other.  The  former  evil  might  be  produced  by 
a  standard  so  exacting  that  few  could  come  up  to  it, 
and  the  latter  by  depressing  it  to  a  point  which  would 
not  secure  even  a  respectable  education.  While  it  is 
a  popular  institution,  and  designed  for  the  greatest 
good  of  the  greatest  number,  it  is  at  the  same  time  to 
be  remembered,  that  though  "it  is  open  to  all,  all 
should  not  go  to  it;"  that,  in  the  language  of  Cousin, 
"it  will  do  no  good  work  for  those  who  are  not  con- 
scious of  a  lofty  destination."  I  repeat,  the  College  has 
performed  its  mission,  and  there  may  be  danger  in  radical 
changes.  No  doubt  we  need  a  more  varied  culture; 
such  as  is  adapted  to  the  specific  wants  of  our  people. 
A  good  work  has  been  done  by  our  excellent  Military 
Schools,  and  the  movement  in  reference  to  our  Free 
Schools  under  the  lead  of  one  of  our  most  distinguished 


426        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

public  men,  may  accomplish  much  in  meeting  the 
general  necessity.  The  College  has  given  an  impulse 
to  the  whole  community;  its  history  has  been  one  of 
progress,  and  without  painful  anxiety  it  may  repose 
upon  its  past  achievements.  Let  its  Trustees  be 
cautious  of  ill-digested  schemes  and  "  theoretical  plati- 
tudes," and  proud  of  her  position  among  the  other 
similar  institutions  of  the  country,  and  not  forgetting 
the  peculiar  circumstances  by  which  we  are  sur- 
rounded, weigh  well  the  matter  whether  a  College 
founded  upon  any  other  basis,  and  having  a  different 
organization,  would  meet  as  well  the  wants  of  our 
people,  and  achieve  an  equal  measure  of  success. 

My  historical  sketch  is  brought  to  a  close.  I  have 
endeavored  to  trace  the  College  through  evil  report 
and  good  report.  It  has  survived  all  its  shocks,  and 
now  stands  a  proud  monument  of  the  wisdom  and 
patriotism  of  its  founders.  We  are  not  called  upon 
to  mourn  over  its  departed  glory;  to  walk  with  melan- 
choly heart  over  grounds  made  desolate,  where  once 
stood  a  majestic  temple,  with  its  towers  and  old  ivied 
turrets — now,  alas  !  in  ruins.  No !  the  temple  still 
remains  in  all  its  proud  and  beautiful  proportions, 
with  its  spires  pointing  to  the  skies;  a  striking  em- 
blem of  those  ennobling  and  elevating  influences  which 
it  imparts  to  all  who  in  faith  and  humility  submit 
themselves  to  the  teachings  of  its  chosen  ministers. 


APPENDIX. 


SOCIETIES  OF  THE  COLLEGE. 

The  first  Society  formed  in  the  College  was  called  the  Philo- 
mathic.  This  was  sufficient  for  all  the  wants  of  the  infant 
Institution,  but  as  the  number  of  students  increased,  the  policy  of 
dividing  it  into  two  became  apparent,  and  accordingly  in  February, 
1806,  the  Clariosophic  and  Euphradian  Societies  were  organized. 
The  original  Society  held  its  meetings  in  the  College  Chapel,  and 
for  several  years  after  the  separation,  the  two  continued  to  assemble 
at  that  place  at  different  hours  on  Saturday.  Dr.  George  W.  Glenn,  of 
Newberry,  who  was  admitted  to  the  College  January  14,  1805,  and 
who  is  now,  I  believe,  the  oldest  surviving  graduate,  gives  me  the 
following  incident: — James  Lowry  and  Joseph  Lowry,  brothers, 
were  received  into  the  College  January  17,  1805.  They  were 
poor,  and  their  necessities  compelled  them  to  board  in  their 
rooms.  One  of  the  brothers  was  appointed  bell-ringer,  and  the 
other  librarian.  The  College  had  just  opened,  the  public  eye  was 
steadily  directed  to  it,  and  the  heroic  efforts  of  these  young  men  to 
secure  the  advantages  of  a  liberal  education,  excited  the  warmest 
interest.  Col.  Taylor,  Judges  Trezevant,  and  Grimke,  and  others, 
frequently  visited  them  at  their  rooms  with  the  view  of  testifying 
their  respect,  and  giving  them  encouragement;  and  the  Judges, 
upon  their  visits  to  Columbia,  often  invited  them  to  dine  with  them 
at  Dr.  Green's  Hotel,  their  usual  house 'of  boarding.  Nor  were 
they  less  esteemed  by  their  fellow  students.  Their  studious  habits 
and  rare  virtues  commended  them  to  all,  and  soon  they  reached  a 
position  of  commanding  influence.  They  were  selected  by  the 
students  to  be  the  leaders  in  the  scheme  of  dividing  the  Society, 
and,  to  use  Dr.  Glenn's  words,  "were  made  captains."  The 
students  were  now  assembled  in  the  Campus,  and  the  brothers 
"  threw  up  heads  and  tails  for  the  first  choice."  In  this  way  the 
selection  was  made,  and  the  roll  of  the  Clariosophic  and  Euphradian 
Societies  determined.  This  was  truly  a  fraternal  parting,  for  there 
is  a  tradition  that  in  every  case,  brothers  attached  themselves  to  dif- 
ferent Societies.  The  Chapel  was  the  common  place  of  meeting 
until  the  year  1820,  when,  upon  application  to  the  Faculty,  separate 
rooms  were  granted  them,  the  Clariosophic  Society  occupying  the 
large  room  above  the  Chapel,  and  the  Euphradian  Society  occupy- 


428        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

ing  the  large  room  on  the  third  floor  of  the  centre  building  of 
DeSaussure  College.  December  7,  1848,  the  Euphradian  Society 
moved  to  the  Hall  in  the  centre  building  of  Harper  College,  on 
which  occasion  an  address  was  delivered  by  Dr.  Thornwell,  and, 
February  10,  1849,  the  Clariosophic  Society  took  possession  of  its 
new  hall  in  the  center  building  of  Legare  College,  when  an  address 
was  delivered  by  Dr.  Henry.  These  halls  are  beautifully  fitted  up> 
and  are  objects  of  great  attraction  to  the  public.  I  have  presented 
this  brief  account  of  the  two  Societies  of  the  College,  because  in 
estimating  the  facilities  which  are  afforded  here  for  a  liberal  educa- 
tion, they  are  too  important  to  be  overlooked.  The  brotherly  spirit 
in  which  they  originated  has  never  been  forgotten,  and  they  present 
the  high  example  of  a  noble  and  generous  rivalry.  There  can  be 
no  doubt  that  they  have  accomplished  a  vast  amount  of  good ;  and 
it  has  been  an  unmixed  good.  They  have  stimulated  the  mental 
energies  in  a  certain  direction  far  more  than  is  done  in  the  Col- 
legiate course  of  instruction ;  and  that  without  interfering  in  any 
way  with  the  proper  demands  made  upon  the  students  by  the 
Faculty.  It  is,  perhaps,  not  saying  too  much  too  add,  that  in  our  edu- 
cational system  they  are  the  nursery  of  eloquence,  and  that  they  gave 
the  first  impulse  to  many  of  the  distinguished  men  of  Carolina,  who 
have  added  so  much  to  her  renown  in  the  halls  of  the  State  and 
National  Legislatures. 

TRUSTEES. 

By  the  Act  incorporating  the  College,  passed  in  1801,  the  Gov- 
ernor,  the  Lieutenant-Gove'rnor,  the  President  of  the  Senate,  the 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  the  Associate  Judges, 
and  the  Judges  of  the  Court  of  Equity  of  the  State  of  South  Caro- 
lina, were  made  ex-officio  Trustees,  and  these,  with  thirteen  per- 
sons appointed  by  the  Legislature,  to  continue  in  office  for  four 
years,  constituted  the  Board  of  Trustees.  According  to  provisions 
enacted,  an  election  by  joint  ballot  of  both  branches  of  the  Legisla- 
ture was  made  in  1805,  and  has  been  made  every  fourth  year  since, 
of  Trustees  not  ex-officio — thirteen  until  1825,  and  twenty  after- 
wards— and  vacancies  occurring  in  the  intervals  have  been  filled  by 
the  Board. 

In  1824,  a  separate  Court  of  Appeals  was  established,  the  term 
Associate  Judges  was  dropped,  and  that  of  Circuit  Judges  adopted 
for  the  Judges  of  the  Courts  of  Law,  who  were  not  members  of  the 
Court  of  Appeals ;  and  the  Judges  of  the  Court  of  Equity  were 
denominated  Chancellors.  In  1825,  it  was  enacted  that  the  Board 
shall  consist  of  the  Governor  and  Lieutenant-Governor  of  the  State, 
the  President  of  the  Senate,  the  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, the  Judges  of  the  Courts  of  Appeals,  the  Circuit  Judges 
of  the  Court  of  Law,  and  the  Chancellors,  ex  officio  ;  together  with 
twenty  other  persons  to  be  elected  by  joint  ballot  of  the  Senate 


APPENDIX.  429 

and  House  of  Representatives,  to  continue  in  office  four  years, 
and  until  others  shall  be  elected."  In  the  changes  of  the  Judiciary 
system,  made  by  the  Acts  of  1835  and  1836,  the  separate  Court  of 
.Appeals  was  abolished,  and  all  the  Judges  of  the  Superior  Courts 
of  Law  and  Equity  in  the  State  were  classed  as  Law  Judges,  or  as 
Chancellors,  and  were  required  to  do  circuit  duty,  and  made  mem- 
bers of  one  or  other  of  the  two  Courts  of  Appeals  which  the  two 
classes  constitute  for  law  and  equity  respectively,  and  also  members 
of  the  Court  of  Errors,  which  is  composed  of  the  whole  of  the 
Judges  assembled  to  hear  appeals  on  certain  questions. 

By  Act  of  1853,  the  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  the  College, 
Education  and  Religion,  of  the  Senate,  and  the  Chairman  of  the 
Committee  on  Education  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  were 
made  ex-officio  members  of  the  Board — so  that  the  whole  number 
of  members  which  now  belongs  to  a  full  Board  is  thirty-six.  Nine 
may  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  any  business,  except 
the  appointment  of  an  officer;  which  can  be  done  only  at  an  annual 
meeting,  and  when  a  majority  of  the  Board  are  present. 

The  Governor  is  ex-ojftcio  President  of  the  Board ;  in  his  absence 
the  Lieutenant  Governor,  President  of  the  Senate,  or  Speaker  of  the 
House  of  Representatives,  in  the  order  named;  in  absence  of  all  these, 
a  President  pro  icin. 

1801. — Gov.  John  Drayton,  Lieut.  Gov.  Richard  Winn,  President 
of  Senate  John  Ward,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives  Theodore 
Gaillard,  Associate  Judge  John  Faucheraud  Grimke,  Associate 
Judge  Elihu  Hall  Bay,  Associate  Judge  Joseph  Brevard,  Associate 
Judge  William  Johnson,  Associate  Judge  Lewis  Trezevant,  Equity 
Judge  Hugh  Rutledge,  Equity  Judge  William  Marshall,  Equity 
Judge  William  Dobein  James,  Charles  Cotesworth  Pinckney,  Henry 
William  DeSaussure,  Thomas  Taylor  Sr.,  D.  E.  Dunlap,  John 
Brown  of  Lancaster,  Wade  Hampton,  Sr.,  John  Chesnut,  James 
Burchell  Richardson,  Isaac  Alexander,  Henry  Dana  Ward,  Samuel 
Yongue,  William  Falconer,  Barthe  Smith. 

1802. — Gov.  James  Burchell  Richardson,  Lieut.  Gov.  Ezekiel 
Pickens,  President  of  Senate  John  Ward,  Speaker  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives Robert  Stark,  John  Taylor. 

1803. — President  of  Senate  John  Gailliard,  Abram  Nott. 

1804. — Gov.  Paul  Hamilton,  Lt.  Gov.  Thomas  Sumter,  Jr.,  Presi- 
dent of  Senate  John  Ward,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives 
William  Cotesworth  Pinckney,  Associate  Judge  Thomas  Lee,  Asso- 
ciate Judge  William  Johnson,  Jonathan  Maxcy. 

1805. — Gov.  Paul  Hamilton,  Lieut.  Gov.  Thomas  Sumter,  Jr., 
President  of  Senate  Robert  Barnwell,  Speaker  House  of  Represen- 
tatives Joseph  Alston,  Associate  Judge  John  Faucheraud  Grimke, 
Associate  Judge  Thomas  Waties,  Associate  Judge  Elihu  Hall  Bay, 
Associate  Judge  Lewis  Trezevant,  Associate  Judge  Joseph  Brevard, 
Associate  Judge  Samuel  Wilds,  Associate  Judge  William  John- 
27 


430        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

son,  Equity  Judge  Hugh  Rutledge,  Equity  Judge  Waddy  Thomp- 
son, Equity  Judge  William  Dobein  James,  Thomas  Taylor,  Sr., 
Abram  Nott,  Zachariah  Cantey,  William  Smith,  Robert  Stark, 
John  Ward,  Jonathan  Maxcy,  Richard  Gantt,  Henry  Deas,  David 
R.  Evans,  Wade  Hampton,  Sr.,  Joseph  Blythe. 

1806. — G-ov.  Charles  Pinckney,  Lieut.  Gov.  John  Hopkins,  Presi- 
dent of  Senate  William  Smith,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives 
Joseph  Alston,  John  Taylor. 

1808. — Gov.  John  Drayton,  Lieut.  Gov.  Frederick  Nance,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Senate  William  Smith,  President  of  Senate  Samuel 
Warren,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives  Joseph  Alston,  Associate 
Judge  William  Smith,  Equity  Judge  H.  Win.  DeSaussure,  Equity 
Judge  Theodore  Gaillard. 

1809. — Gov.  John  Drayton,  Lieut.  Gov.  Frederick  Nance,  Presi- 
dent of  Senate  Samuel  Warren,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives 
Joseph  Alston,  Associate  Judge  John  F.  Grimke,  Associate  Judge 
Elihu  Hall  Bay,  Associate  Judge  Thomas  Waties,  Associate  Judge 
Joseph  Brevard,  Associate  Judge  Samuel  Wilds,  Associate  Judge 
William  Smith,  Equity  Judge  Hugh  Rutledge,  Equity  Judge  Wil- 
liam Dobein  James,  Equity  Judge  Waddy  Thompson,  Equity  Judge 
Henry  William  DeSaussure,  Equity  Judge  Theodore  Gaillard, 
David  R.  Evans,  Joseph  Gist,  Robert  Stark,  John  Caldwell  Cal- 
houn,  Richard  Gantt,  John  Taylor,  John  Smythe  Richardson, 
Abrani  Nott,  Benjamin  Haile,  John  Murphy,  James  Ervin,  John  J. 
Chappell,  James  B.  Richardson. 

1810. — Gov.  Henry  Middleton,  Lieut.  Gov.  Samuel  Farron, 
President  of  Senate  Samuel  Warren,  Speaker  House  of  Representa- 
tives John  Geddes,  Judge  Abrani  Nott,  James  Hibben,  Sr. 

1811. — Associate  Judge  Charles  Jones  Colcock. 

1812. — Gov.  Joseph  Alston,  Lieut.  Gov.  Eldred  Simkins,  Presi- 
dent of  Senate  Samuel  Warren,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives 
John  Geddes,  Henry  Dana  Ward,  John  M.  Felder. 

1813. — Gov.  J.  Alston,  Lt.  Gov.  E.  Simkins,  President  of  Senate  J. 
B.  Richardson,  President  of  Senate  Savage  Smith,  Speaker  House  of 
Representatives  John  Geddes,  Associate  Judge  John  F.  Grimke, 
Asssociate  Judge  Elihu  Hall  Bay,  Associate  Judge  Joseph  Brevard, 
Associate  Judge  Abram  Nott,  Associate  Judge  Charles  J.  Colcock, 
Associate  Judge  William  Smith,  Equity  Judge  William  D.  James, 
Equity  Judge  Waddy  Thompson,  Equit}^  Judge  Henry  William 
DeSaussure,  Equity  Judge  Theodore  Gaillard,  Equity  Judge 
Thomas  Waties,  Joseph  Gist,  Richard  Gantt,  Walter  Crenshaw, 
Henry  Dana  Ward,  Robert  Stark,  Jonathan  Maxcy,  Daniel  Elliott 
Huger,  James  Hibben,  John  Hooker,  William  Harper,  John  Cald- 
well, John  Murphy,  James  Ervin. 

1814.— Gov.  David  Roger  Williams,  Lieut.  Gov. 
President   of  Senate  James   R.  Pringle,  Speaker  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives Thomas  Bennett. 


APPENDIX.  431 

1815. — Associate  Judge  Richard  Gantt,  Associate  Judge  David 
Johnson,  Abram  Blanding. 

1816. — Gov.  Andrew  Pickens,  Lieut.  Gov.  Cuthbert,  As- 

sociate Judge  Langdon  Cheves,  President  of  Senate  James  R. 
Pringle,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives  Thomas  Bennett, 
Edward  Fisher,  William  Edward  Hayne. 

1817. — Gov.  Andrew  Pickens,  J^ieut.  Gov.  Cuthbert, 

President  of  Senate  James  R.  Pringle,  Speaker  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives Thomas  Bennett,  Associate  Judge  John  F.  Grimke, 
Associate  Judge  Elihu  Hall  Bay,  Associate  Judge  Charles  Jones 
Colcock,  Associate  Judge  Abram  Nott,  Associate  Judge  Richard 
Gantt,  Associate  Judge  David  Johnson,  Associate  Judge  Langdon 
Cheves,  Equity  Judge  Henry  William  DeSaussure,  Equity  Judge 
Theodore  Gaillard,  Equity  Judge  Thomas  Waties,  Equity  Judge 
William  D.  James,  Equity  Judge  Waddy  Thompson,  Jonathan 
Maxcy,  William  Harper,  Abram  Blanding,  John  Keitt,  Jacob  Bond 
Ion,  Francis  Kinloch  Huger,  John  Taylor,  Warren  Ransom  Davis, 
John  Belton  O'Neall,  Robert  Stark,  Joseph  Gist,  David  Roger 
Williams,  John  G.  Brown. 

1818. — Governor  John  Geddes,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  Youngblood, 
President  of  Senate  James  R.  Pringle,  Speaker  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives Robert  Yongue  Hayne,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives 
Patrick  Noble,  Associate  Judge  John  S.  Richardson,  Josiah  J. 
Evans,  William  Edward  Hayne,  George  McDuffie,  Daniel  Elliott 
Huger. 

1819. — President  of  Senate  Benjamin  Huger. 

1820. — Gov.  Thomas  Bennett,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  Cotesworth 
Pinckney,  President  of  Senate  Benjamin  Huger,  Speaker  House  of 
Representatives  Patrick  Noble,  Stephen  Elliott. 

1821. — Gov.  Thomas  Bennett,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  Cotesworth 
Pinckney,  President  of  Senate  Benjamin  Huger,  Speaker  House  of 
Representatives  Patrick  Noble,  Associate  Judge  Elihu  Hall  Bay, 
Associate  Judge  Abrain  Nott,  Associate  Judge  Charles  J.  Colcock, 
Associate  Judge  Richard  Gantt,  Associate  Judge  David  Johnson, 
Associate  Judge  John  S.  Richardson,  Associate  Judge  Daniel  E. 
Huger,  Equity  Judge  Henry  William  DeSaussure,  Equity  Judge 
Theodore  Gaillard,  Equity  Judge  Thomas  Waties,  Equity  Judge 
William  D.  James,  Equity  Judge  Waddy  Thompson,  Josiah  J. 
Evans,  Jacob  Bond  Ion,  James  S.  Deas,  John  Lide  Wilson,  Stephen 
Elliott,  Warren  Ransom  Davis,  William  Edward  Hayne,  John 
Taylorf  William  A.  Bull,  Benjamin  T.  Elmore,  James  Gregg, 
William  Crafts,  John  Ramsay. 

1822.— Gov.  John  Lide  Wilson,  Lt.  Gov.  Henry  Bradley,  Presi- 
dent of  Senate  Jacob  Bond  Ion,  Speaker  House  of  Representa- 
tives Patrick  Noble,  John  Belton  O'Neall,  William  C.  Preston, 
William  J.  Grayson. 

1824. — Gov.  Richard  Irvine  Manning,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  A. 


432        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Bull,  President  of  Senate  Jacob  Bond  Ion,  Speaker  House  of 
Representatives  John  Belton  O'Neall. 

1825. — Gov.  Richard  Irvine  Manning,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  A. 
Bull,  President  of  Senate  Jacob  Bond  Ion,  Speaker  of  House  of 
Representatives  John  Belton  O'Neall,  Judge  Ct.  Ap.  Abram  Nott, 
Judge  Ct.  Ap.  Charles  J.  Colcock,  Judge  Ct.  of  Ap.  David  Johnson, 
Ch.  Henry  W.  DeSaussure,  Ch.  Waddy  Thompson,  Circuit  Law 
Judge  Elihu  Hall  Bay,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Theodore  Gaillard, 
Circuit  Law  Judge  Richard  Gantt,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Daniel 
Elliott  Huger,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Wm.  D.  James,  Circuit  Law 
Judge  John  S.  Richardson,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Thomas  Waties, 
Josiah  J.  Evans,  David  R.  Williams,  Stephen  Elliott,  William  J. 
Grayson,  Stephen  D.  Miller,  Baylis  John  Earle,  Alfred  Huger, 
Franklin  H.  Elmore,  William  A.  Bull,  James  S.  Deas. 

1826. — Gov.  John  Taylor,  Lieut.  Gov.  James  Harvey  Wither- 
spoon,  President  Senate  Jacob  Bond  Ion,  Speaker  House  Repre- 
sentatives John  Belton  O'Neall,  Richard  J.  Manning,  Wade  Hamp- 
ton, Jr. 

1828.— Gov.  Stephen  D.  Miller,  Lieut.  Gov.  Thomas  Williams, 
President  Senate  Henry  Deas,  Speaker  House  Representatives  Benj. 
Fanuiel  Dunkin,  Chan.  William  Harper,  Circuit  Law  Judge  John 
Belton  O'Neall,  Jacob  Bond  Ion,  David  Lewis  Wardlaw. 

1829. — Gov.  Stephen  D.  Miller,  Lieut.  Gov.  Thomas  Williams, 
President  Senate  Henry  Deas,  Speaker  House  Representatives 
Benj.  Fanuiel  Dunkin,  Judge  Ct.  Ap.  Abram  Nott,  Judge  Ct.  Ap. 
Charles  J.  Colcock,  Judge  Ct.  Ap.  David  Johnson,  Ch.  Henry  W. 
DeSaussure,  Ch.  William  Harper,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Elihu  H.  Bay, 
Circuit  Law  Judge  Richard  Gantt,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Daniel  Elliott 
Huger,  Circuit  Law  Judge  John  S.  Richardson,  Circuit  Law  Judge 
John  Belton  O'Neall,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Josiah  J.  Evans,  Jacob 
Bond  Ion,  Richard  J.  Manning,  David  R.  Williams,  Stephen  Elliott, 
William  J.  Grayson,  Baylis  John  Earle,  Alfred  Huger,  Franklin 
H.  Elmore,  Whitemarsli  B.  Seabrook,  James  S.  Deas,  William 
Campbell  Preston,  Hugh  Swinton  Legare,  Wade  Hampton,  Jr., 
James  Gregg,  Thompson  T.  Player,  David  Lewis  Wardlaw,  Job 
Johnston,  David  J.^McCord,  Andrew  Pickens  Butler,  Henry  Laur- 
ens  Pinckney. 

1830. — Gov.  James  Hamilton,  Lieut.  Gov.  Patrick  Noble, 
President  Senate  Henry  Deas,  Speaker  House  Representatives 
Henry  L.  Pinckney,  Ch.  Job  Johnston,  Circuit  Law  Judge  William 
D.  Martin,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Baylis  J.  Earle,  Waddy  Thompson, 
Philip  Edward  Pearson,  Thomas  Smith,  Daniel  E.  Huger,  Robert 
B.  Campbell. 

1832. — Gov.  Robert  Yongue  Hayne,  Lieut.  Gov.  Charles  C. 
Pinckney,  President  Senate  Henry  Deas,  Speaker  House  Represen- 
tatives Patrick  Noble,  James  Hamilton,  Jr. 

1833. — Gov.  Robert  Yongue  Hayne,  Lieut.  Gov.  Thomas  Wright, 


APPENDIX.  433 

President  Senate  Henry  Deas,  Speaker  House  Representatives 
Patrick  Noble,  Judge  Ct.  Ap.  David  Johnson,  Judge  Ct.  Ap.  John 
B.  O'Neati,  Judge  Ct.  Ap.  William  Harper,  Ch.  Henry  William 
DeSaussure,  Ch.  Job  Johnston,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Elihu  Hall  Bay, 
Circuit'  La*w  Judge  Richard  Gantt,  Circuit  Law  Judge  John  S. 
Richardson,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Josiah  J.  Evans,  Circuit  Law 
Judge  Baylis  J.  Earle,  Circuit  Law  Judge  Andrew  P.  Butler, 
Franklin  H.  Elmore,  James  Gregg,  Wade  Hampton,  Jr.,  Alfred 
Huger,  Daniel  E.  Huger,  William  Frederick  Davie,  Richard  J. 
Manning,  David  J.  McCord,  Thompson  T.  Player,  Philip  E.  Pearson, 
Whitemarsh  B.  Seabrook,  Waddy  Thompson,  Jr.,  James  Rose, 
David  Lewis  Wardlaw,  Pierce  M.  Butler,  Thomas  W.  Glover, 
Thomas  Jefferson  Withers,  Edward  Fisher,  Sr.,  William  Ford 
DeSaussure,  Christian  P.  Bookter. 

1834.— Gov.    George  McDuffie,    Lieut.  Gov.    W.  B.  Seabrook, 
President  Senate  Henry  Deas,  Speaker  House  of  Representatives 
Patrick  Noble,  James  Hamilton,  Jr.,  Robert  Y.  Hayne. 
M835. — James  Louis  Petigru,  Robert  W.  Barnwell. 

1836.— Gov.  Pierce  M.  Butler,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  Dubose, 
President  Senate  Patrick  Noble,  Speaker  House  Representatives 
David  Lewis  Wardlaw,  Thomas  Smith,  Joseph  Newton  Whitner, 
David  H.  Means,  George  McDuffie. 

1837. — Gov.  Pierce  M.  Butler,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  Dubose, 
President  Senate  Patrick  Noble,  Speaker  House  Representatives 
David  L.  Wardlaw,  Law  Judge  Richard  Gantt,  Law  Judge  John  S. 
Richardson,  Law  Judge  John  Belton  O'Neall,  Law  Judge  Josiah 
J.  Evans,  Law  Judge  Baylis  J.  Earle,  Law  Judge  Andrew  P.  But- 
ler, Ch.  David  Johnson,  Ch.  William  Harper,  Ch.  Job  Johnston, 
Ch.  Benjamin  F.  Dunkin,  Joseph  E.  Jenkins,  James  Gregg,  Wade 
Hampton,  Jr.,  Christopher  Gustavus  Memminger,  William  F.  Col- 
cock,  Abram  Blanding,  David  J.  McCord,  Thompson  T.  Player, 
James  Hamilton,  Jr.,  Robert  Yongue  Hayne,  James  Louis  Petigru, 
George  McDuffie,  Thomas  J.  Withers,  Edward  H.  Anderson,  Joseph 
N.  Whitner,  Maximilian  LaBorde,  William  Ford  DeSaussure,  Robt. 
W.  Barnwell,  Thomas  Smith,  David  H.  Means. 

1838. — Gov.  Patrick  Noble,  Lieut.  Gov.  B.  K.  Henagan,  Presi- 
dent Senate  Patrick  Noble,  President  Senate  Angus  Patterson, 
Speaker  House  Representatives  David  L.  Wardlaw. 

1839. — James  Gillespie,  Thomas  N.  Dawkins. 

1840. — Gov.  John  Peter  Richardson,  Lieut.  Gov.  W.  K.  Clowney, 
James  H.  Hammond,  Robert  Francis  Withers  Allston. 

1841. — Gov.  John  Peter  Richardson,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  K.  Clow- 
ney, President  Senate  Angus  Patterson,  Speaker  House  Representa- 
tives William  F.  Colcock,  Judge  J.  S.  Richardson,  Judge  John  B. 
O'Neall,  Judge  Josiah  J.  Evans,  Judge  Baylis  J.  Earle,  Judge  A. 
Pickens  Butler,  Judge  David  Lewis  Wardlaw,  Ch.  David  Johnson, 


434        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Ch.  William  Harper,  Ch.  Job  Johnston,  Ch.  Benjamin  F.  Dunkin, 
James  Gregg,  Wade  Hampton,  Jr.,  George  McDuffie,  Christopher 
G.  Memminger,  Thomas  J.  Withers,  Joseph  Newton  Whitner, 
Maximilian  LaBorde,  William  Ford  DeSaussure,  Robert  W.  Barn- 
well,  Thomas  N.  Dawkins,  Thomas  Smith,  James  Gillespie,  Eobert 
F.  W.  Allston,  James  H.  Hammond,  Whitemarsh  B.  Seabrook, 
Edmund  Bellinger,  Jr.,  Daniel  E.  Huger,  William  Me  Willie,  John 
Lawrence  Manning,  James  H.  Adams. 

1842. — Gov.  James  H.  Hammond,  Lieut.  Gov.  Isaac  Donnoin 
Witherspoon,  President  Senate  Angus  Patterson,  Speaker  House 
Representatives  William  F.  Colcock. 

1843. — Judge  Edward  Frost,  Wm.  Campbell  Preston,  Robt.  Henry. 

1844. — Gov.  William  Aiken,  Lieut.  Gov.  John  F.  Ervin,  Presi- 
dent Senate  Angus  Patterson,  Speaker  House  Representatives 
William  F.  Colcock. 

1845. — Gov.  William  Aiken,  Lieut.  Gov.  John  F.  Ervin,  Presi- 
dent Senate  Angus  Patterson,  Speaker  House  Representatives 
William  F.  Colcock,  Judge  John  S.  Richardson,  Judge  John  B. 
O'Neall,  Judge  Josiah  J.  Evans,  Judge  A.  Pickens  Butler,  Judge 
David  Lewis  Wardlaw,  Judge  Edward  Frost,  Ch.  David  Johnson, 
Ch.  William  Harper,  Ch.  Job  Johnson,  Ch.  Benjamin  F.  Dunkin, 
James  Gregg,  William  Ford  DeSaussure,  Robert  W.  Barn  well, 
Thomas  Smith,  James  Gillespie,  Edmund  Bellinger,  Jr.,  W.  B. 
Seabrook,  James  H.  Adams,  Benjamin  F.  Perry,  William  F.  Davie, 
Wade  Hampton,  Christopher  G.  Memminger,  Thomas  J.  Withers, 
Joseph  N.  Whitner,  Thomas  N.  Dawkins,  John  L.  Manning, 
Robert  F.  W.  Allston,  John  Buchanan,  Henry  C.  Young,  Isaac 
Donnom  Witherspoon. 

1846. — Gov.  David  Johnson,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  Cain,  Ch. 
James  J.  Caldwell,  Judge  Thomas  J.  Withers. 

1847. — Francis  Hugh  Wardlaw,  Ch.  George  Washington  Dargan, 
Robert  Wilson  Gibbes. 

1848. — Gov.  Whitemarsh  B.  Seabrook,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  H. 
Gist,  President  Senate  Angus  Patterson,  Speaker  House  Repre- 
sentatives John  Izard  Middleton. 

1849. — Gov.  Whitemarsh  B.  Seabrook,  Lieut.  Gov.  William  H. 
Gist,  President  Senate  Angus  Patterson,  Speaker  House  Repre- 
sentatives John  Izard  Middleton,  Judge  John  S.  Richardson,  Judge 
John  Belton  O'Neall,  Judge  Josiah  J.  Evans,  Judge  David  Lewis 
Wardlaw,  Judge  Edward  Frost,  Judge  Thomas  J.  Withers,  Ch.  Job 
Johnston,  Ch.  Benjamin  F.  Dunkin,  Ch.  James  J.  Caldwell,  Ch. 
George  W.  Dargan,  Thomas  N.  Dawkins,  Robert  W.  Barnwell, 
Robert  F.  W.  Allston,  John  Buchanan,  Joseph  N.  Whitner,  Francis 
Hugh  Wardlaw,  Benjamin  F.  Perry,  William  F.  DeSaussure, 
Christopher  G.  Memminger,  John  L.  Manning,  Isaac  D.  Wither- 
spoon, Wade  Hampton,  Henry  C.  Young,  James  H.  Adams, 


APPENDIX.  435 

Edmund  Bellinger,  Jr.,  Thomas  Smith,  James  Gillespie,  James 
Louis  Petigru,  John  S.  Preston,  David  Johnson. 

1850. — Gov.  John  Hugh  Means,  Lieut.  Gov.  Joshua  John  Ward, 
President  Senate  Robert  Francis  Withers  Allston,  Speaker  House 
Representatives  James  Simons,  Ch.  Francis  Hugh  Wardlaw,  Judge 
Joseph  Newton-  Whitner,  Robert  Wilson  Gibbes,  John  Izard 
Middleton,  Franklin  J.  Moses. 

1851.— William  Campbell  Preston. 

1852. — Gov.  John  Lawrence  Manning,  Lieut.  Gov.  J.  H.  Irby, 
President  Senate  Robert  F.  W.  Allston,  Speaker  House  Representa- 
tives James  Simons. 

1853. — Gov.  John  L.  Manning,  Lieut.  Gov.  J.  H.  Irby,  Presi- 
dent Senate  Robert  F.  W.  Allston,  Speaker  House  Representatives 
James  Simons,  Ch.  Com.  Ed.  Sen.  J.  F.  Townsend,  Ch.  Com.  Ed. 
H.  R.  C.  P.  Sullivan,  Judge  John  Belton  O'Neall,  Judge  D.  Lewis 
Wardlaw,  Judge  Thomas  J.  Withers,  Judge  Joseph  N.  Whitner, 
Judge  Thomas  W.  Glover,  Judge  R.  Munro,  Ch.  Job  Johnston, 
Ch.  Benjamin  F.  Dunkin,  Ch.  George  W.  Dargan,  Ch.  Francis  H. 
Wardlaw,  Thomas  N.  Dawkins,  Benjamin  F.  Perry,  John  Izard 
Middleton,  John  Hugh  Means,  James  Chesnut,  Jr.,  William  F. 
DeSaussure,  Robert  W.  Barn  well,  John  S.  Preston,  William  C. 
Preston,  J.  Donnom  Witherspoon,  C.  G.  Memminger,  Thomas 
Smith,  James  H.  Adams,  James  Gillespie,  David  Johnson,  John 
Buchanan,  Franklin  J.  Moses,  Wade  Hampton,  Sr.,  James  L. 
Petigru,  Robert  W.  Gibbes. 

1854. — Gov.  James  H.  Adams,  Lieut.  Gov.  Richard  DeTreville. 

1856.— Gov.  R.  F.  W.  Allston,  Lieut.  Gov.  G.  Cannon,  President 
Senate  James  Chesnut  Jr. 

1857.— Gov.  R.  F.  W.  Allston,  Lieut.  Gov.  Gabriel  Cannon, 
President  Senate  James  Chesnut  Jr.,  Speaker  House  Representa- 
tives James  Simons,  Ch.  Com.  Ed.  Sen.  J.  F.  Townsend,  Ch.  Com. 
Ed.  House  Representatives  C.  P.  Sullivan,  Judge  John  Belton 
O'Neall,  Judge  D.  Lewis  Wardlaw,  Judge  Thomas  J.  Withers, 
Judge  Joseph  N.  Whitner,  Judge  Thomas  W.  Glover,  Judge  R. 
Munro,  Ch.  Job  Johnson,  Ch.  B.  F.  Dunkin,  Ch.  George  W. 
Dargan,  Ch.  Francis  H.  Wardlaw,  James  H.  Thorn  well,  John  A. 
Inglis,  Thomas  N.  Dawkins,  Benjamin  F.  Perry,  J.  Izard  Middle- 
ton,  J.  H.  Means,  W.  F.  DeSaussure,  R.  W.  Barnwell,  John  S. 
Preston,  C.  Gr.  Memminger,  Thomas  C.  Perrin,  Merritt  E.  Carn, 
Thomas  Smith,  John  Buchanan,  F.  J.  Moses,  J.  L.  Petigru,  John 
L.  Manning,  Samuel  McAlilley,  James  H.  Adams,  James  Farrow. 

1858. — Gov.  W.  H.  Gist,  Lieut.  Grov.  M:  E.  Carn,  President 
Senate  W.  D.  Porter,  Ch.  Com.  Ed.  Sen.  James  P.  Carroll,  Ch. 
Com.  Ed.  House  Representatives  S.  McGowan,  R,  F.  W.  Allston. 

Secretaries  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  S.  C.  C. — 1804,  Benjamin 
Haile;  1805,  Clement  Early;  1806,  James  Guignard,  (declined  to 
accept;)  1806,  Anderson  Crenshaw;  1808,  Walter  Crenshaw;  1813, 


436 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 


J.  J.  Goodwyn;  1813,  William  F.  DeSaussure;  1826,  Ezek  H. 
Maxcy;  1834,  Edward  W.  Johnston;  1836,  Alester  Garden;  1843, 
Jaines  D.  Blanding;  1854,  L.  L.  Fraser. 

PRESIDENTS. 


Jonathan  Maxcy,  .     . 

B.  Lett.,  Crit.  &  MetJ  1804 

1820 

Thomas  Cooper,     .     . 

Chem.,  Min.  &  Geol.i  1820 

Pro  tern. 

Thomas  Cooper,  .     . 

"           "            u 

1821  I  1834 

Robert  Henry,  .     .     . 

Mor.  Philos.  &  Met. 

1834 

Pro  tern. 

Robert  W.  Barnwell, 

u            u                  u 

1835 

1841 

Robert  Henry,  .     .     . 

u            u                   u 

1842 

1845 

William  C.  Preston, 

Belles  Let.  &  Crit. 

1845 

1851 

James  H.  Thornwell,  .    Sac.  Lit.  &  Ev.  Chris. 

1851 

1855 

Charles  F.  McCay,    .      Mathematics. 

1855 

1857 

A.  B.  Longstreet,  .     . 

His.  Pol.  Phi.  &  B.  L. 

1857 

PROFESSORS. 

NAMES. 

DEPARTMENTS. 

ELEC. 

EXIT. 

REMARKS. 

Enoch  Hanford,     .     . 

Languages, 

1804 

1806 

Clement  Early,     .     . 

u 

1805 

1805 

Elisha  Hammond,  .     . 

u 

1805 

1806 

Thomas  Park,    ,     .     . 

" 

1806 

1835 

Paul  H.  Perrault,     . 

French  Language, 

1806 

Paul  H.  Perrault,   .     . 

Math,  and  Nat.  Phi., 

1807    1811 

John  Brown,  .     .     . 

Logic  and  Moral  Phi., 

1809 

1811 

Charles  Dewar  Simons, 

Chemistry, 

1811 

1812 

Benj.  R.  Montgomery, 

Logic  and  Moral  Phi., 

1811 

1818 

George  Blackburn,     . 

Math.  &  Astronomy, 

1811 

1815 

Edward  Darrill  Smith, 

Chem.  and  Nat.  Phi., 

1812 

1819 

Christian  Hanckel,     . 

Mathematics, 

1815 

1820 

Robert  Henry,     .     . 

Moral  Phi.  &  Logic, 

1818 

Elected  Pres.  1842. 

Thomas  Cooper,     .     . 

Chemistry, 

1819 

Elected  Pres.  1820. 

James  Wallace,    .     . 

Mathematics, 

1820 

Pro  tern. 

James  Wallace,  .     .     . 

u 

1821 

1834 

Lardner  Vanuxem,  . 

Geology  &  Miner'gy., 

1821 

1827 

Henry  Junius  Nott,     . 

Logic,  E.  Crt.  &  P.  L. 

1824 

Robert  W.  Gibbes,  . 

Chemistry, 

1827 

Adjunct  Prof. 

Thomas  Cooper,     .     . 

Chem.  &  Mineralogy, 

1834 

Robert  W.  Gibbes,  . 

u                             u 

1834 

1835 

Pro  tern. 

Lewis  R.  Gibbes,    .     . 

Mathematics, 

1834 

1835 

u      u 

Henry  J.  Nott,     .     . 

Logic  &  Belles  Let., 

1834 

1837 

William  H.  Ellet,     . 

Chemistry, 

1835 

1848 

Francis  Lieber,  .     .     . 

History  &Pol.Econ., 

1835 

1856 

4___  - 

I.  W.  Stuart,    .     .     . 

Greek  &  Roman  Lit., 

1S35 

1839 

Thomas  S.  Twiss,     . 

Mathematics, 

1835 

1846 

* 

William  Capers,     .     . 

Sacred  Literature, 

1835 

Accepted  temp'rily. 

Thomas  Park,     .     . 

Greek  &  Roman  Lit., 

1835 

Adjunct  Professor. 

APPENDIX. 


437 


PROFESSORS— CONTINUED. 


NAMES. 

DEPARTMENTS. 

ELEC. 

EXIT. 

REMARKS. 

Stephen  Elliott,    .     . 

Sacred  Literature, 

1835 

1840 

James  H.  Thornwell,  . 

Logic  &  Belles  Let., 

1837 

1840 

William  Hooper,    .     . 

Greek  &  Roman  Lit., 

1839 

1846 

James  H.  Thornwell, 

Sac.Lit.  &Ev.  Chris., 

1840 

Elected  Pres.  1851. 

Maximilian  LaBorde, 

Logic  &  Belles  Let., 

1842 

Robert  Henry,  .     .     . 

Greek  Literature, 

1845 

1856 

Matthew  J.  Williams,  . 

Math.  &  Median.  Phi. 

1846 

1853 

Charles  P.  Pelham,  . 

Roman  Literature, 

1846 

1857 

Richard  T.  Brumby,    . 

Chem.,  Miner.,  Geol., 

1848 

1856 

J.  L.  Reynolds,    .     . 

Belles  Let.  &  Elocu., 

1851 

Charles  F.  McCay, 

Math.  &  Mech.  Phi., 

1853 

Elected  Pres.  1855. 

James  L.  Reynolds,    . 

Sac.  Lit.  &Ev.  Chris., 

1855 

John  LeConte,     .     . 

Nat.  &  Mech.  Phi., 

1856 

William  J.  Rivers, 

Greek  Literature, 

1856 

Joseph  LeConte,  .     . 

Chem.  &  Geology, 

1856 

R.  W.  Barnwell,  jr.,    . 

History  &  Pol.  Econ., 

1856 

Charles  S.  Venable.  . 

Math.  &  Astronomy, 

1857 

TUTORS. 


NAMES. 

DEPARTMENTS. 

ELEC. 

EXIT. 

Edward  Hooker,        .         ... 
Nicholas  Herbemont, 
James  Gregg,    
Phillips,         .... 

Mathematics, 
Fr'h.  Language, 
Mathematics, 
Languages, 
Mathematics, 

1807 
1807 
1808 
1811 
1813 

1808 
1818 
1812 

Christian  Hanckel, 
James  Camak,  .         . 
Hugh  McMillan,     . 
Timothy  D.  Porter,   .... 
William  K.  Clowney, 

« 

Languages, 
Mathematics, 
Languages, 

1815 
1817 
1818 
1819 
1820 
1823 

1818 
1820 
1823 
1824 

1827 

Jarnes  Divver,        .... 
John  R.  Davis,           .... 
Isaac  W.  Hayne,    
Lewis  R.  Gibbes,       .... 
James  W.  Wilkinson,    . 
William  Blanding,     .... 
Charles  K.  Johnston, 
George  E.  Hawes,     .... 
Charles  P.  Pelham, 
R.  W.Denton,  

Mathematics, 
Classics, 
Mathematics, 

Classics, 
Mathematics, 
Classics, 
Mathematics, 

Classics, 
u 

1824 

1827 
1827 
1831 
1835 
1835 
1836 
1838 
1840 
1844 

1827 
1830 
1831 
1834 
1836 
1837 
1839 

1843 

NOTE. — Tutors  were  elected  by  the  Board  previous  to  1834,  and  subsequent 
to  that  date  by  the  Faculty. 


438        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

TREASURERS  AND  LIBRARIANS. 

1805,  Enoch  Handford,  Treasurer;  1805,  Elisha  Hammond, 
Librarian;  1806,  Thomas  Park,  Treasurer;  1800,  Joseph  Lowry, 
Librarian;  1808,  Thomas  Park,  Librarian;  1823,  James  Divver, 
Treasurer  and  Librarian;  1824,  Joseph  A.  Black,  Treasurer  and 
Librarian;  1829,  M.  Michaelowitz,  Librarian;  1829,  Ezek  H. 
Maxcy,  Treasurer;  1834,  Thomas  Park,  Librarian;  1836,  Elias 
Hall,  Librarian;  1839,  Thomas  Park,  Treasurer  and  Librarian; 
1844,  Henry  C.  Davis,  Librarian;  1844,  Thomas  E.  Peck,  Treas- 
urer; 1845,  G.  W.  Landrum,  Treasurer;  1847,  A.  D.  Goodwyn, 
Treasurer;  1848,  John  S.  Green,  Treasurer;  1848,  F.  W.  McMaster, 
Librarian;  1850,  F.  W.  McMaster,  Librarian,  1856,  B.  W.  Means, 
Librarian. 

The  following  explanation  is  believed  to  be  necessary.  It  would 
be  a  great  mistake  to  suppose  that  the  instruction  of  the  several 
members  of  the  Faculty  was  restricted  to  the  departments  assigned 
them  in  the  preceding  schedule.  I  have  given  the  department  to 
which  the  officer  was  elected.  In  many  cases  a  department  was  seri- 
ously modified,  and  in  some  an  officer  transferred  to  a  different  one 
altogether.  The  most  important  of  these  changes  will  be  given :  Dr. 
Cooper,  in  addition  to  his  instruction  in  Chemistry,  was  also  teacher 
of  Political  Economy;  Professor  Nott  had  a  portion  of  the  instruction 
in  Latin;  Dr.  Henry,  when  President,  had  devolved  upon  him  the 
instruction  of  the  Senior  Class  in  Greek,  in  addition  to  Moral  Phi- 
losophy and  Metaphysics;  President  Barn  well  had  committed  to 
him  the  teaching  in  Metaphysics,  but  upon  the  election  of  Professor 
Thornweil  it  was  transferred  to  him,  and  Mr.  Barnwell  added  to  his 
department,  International  Law;  and  Professor  Thornweil,  though 
elected  to  the  Belles  Lettres  Chair,  soon  vacated  it,  and  for  the  greater 
part  of  his  term  as  Professor,  was  successively  the  Teacher  of  Meta- 
physics, and  Sacred  Literature  and  Evidences.  I  will  add  that, 
when  in  1845  Mr.  Preston  was  called  to  the  Presidency,  the  depart- 
ment of  Belles  Lettres  was  assigned  him,  and  Professor  LaBorde 
took  charge  of  Metaphysics.  Professors  Reynolds,  Barnwell  and 
Pelham  were  transferred  respectively  to  the  departments  of  Roman 
Literature,  the  Evidences,  and  History,  in  1857. 

ALUMNI. 

1806. — Anderson  Crenshaw. 

1807.— John  Caldwell,  Walter  Crenshaw,  George  W.  Glen,  John 
Wesley  Harper. 

1808.— William  Brantly,  John  N.  Davis,  Charles  M.  Dewit, 
William  J.  Dubose,  Josiah  J.  Evans,  Ivy  Finch,  James  Gaillard, 
John  Gill,  James  T.  Goodwyn,  James  R.  Gregg,  Anthony  W. 
Hampton,  William  Harper,  William  Jones,  James  Lowry,  Joseph 
Lowry,  John  Mayrant,  John  K.  Mclver,  John  Evander  Mclver, 


APPENDIX.  439 

William  H.  McKenzie,  Stephen  D.  Miller,  Thomas  Mills,  John 
Murphy,  Thomas  Palmer,  Thomas  W.  llobertson,  Isaac  Smith, 
Charles  Stephens,  Charles  Strong,  Henry  P.  Taylor,  Nathaniel  A. 
Ware,  William  R.  Waring,  Benjamin  II.  Waring. 

1809. — Alexander  Bowie,  George  Butler,  Robert  Blair  Campbell, 
George  Davis,  James  Truman  Dent,  Elias  Dubose,  Thomas  Dupont, 
Thomas  Gaillard,  Robert  Gill,  William  John  Grayson,  Richard 
Hutson,  John  Wilson  Lide,  Curtis  Clifton  Patrick,  James  Louis 
Petigru,  Billington  M.  Sanders,  John  Shaw,  William  Taylor, 
Benjamin  Franklin  Whitner. 

1810.— James  Bradley,  William  A.  Bull,  William  Butler,  Warren 
R.  Davis,  James  Dillet,  Samuel  G.  Earle,  Benjamin  T.  Elmore, 
James  Frurson,  William  Gill,  John  R.  Golding,  Elias  Gregg, 
Robert  A.  Gregg,  Job  Johnston,  William.  Lowry,  John  B.  Muldrow, 
Christopher  B.  Pegues,  Joseph  Pyatt,  John  Pyatt,  Charles  A. 
Saxon,  Joseph  Vann  Shanklin,  Wyatt  Starke,  Daniel  Tillinghast, 
William  C.  Wade,  John  Waties,  George  Witherspoon. 

1811. — William  Arthur,  John  Bell,  John  F.  Brevard,  John  G. 
Brown,  John  Buchanan,  John  Carter,  David  Cuttino,  Henry  Davis, 
Jeptha  Dyson,  Baylis  J.  Earle,  John  Futhey,  Simon  Peter  Gray, 
Burr  Johnston,  Samuel  B.  Lewers,  Richard  Irvine  Manning,  Charles 
Mayrant,  William  Mayrant,  William  Marshall,  John  B.  McCall, 
John  R.  McMillan,  John  Scott,  Thomas  Smith,  Robert  A.  Taylor, 
James  R.  Verdier,  James  D.  Zimmerman. 

1812. — Robert  Adams,  Nimrod  E.  Benson,  Alfred  Brevard, 
Whitfield  Brooks,  William  Cain,  James  Campbell,  Thomas  Cahusac, 
Charles  D.  Connor,  Henry  Connor,  Willis  Crenshaw,  William  H. 
Fleming,  Richard  Footman,  Jesse  H.  Goodwyn,  Robert  H.  Good- 
wyn,  Hardy  Herbert,  William  Johnson,  John  Ward  McCall, 
Russel  P.  McCord,  Albert  J.  McGinney,  Samuel  McMillan, 
James  Masscy,  Charles  C.  Mayson,  Arthur  Harper  O'Hara,  John 
Belton  O'Neall,  Benjamin  Franklin  Pepon,  Henry  Laurens  Pinck- 
ney,  William  Campbell  Preston,  John  Reid,  Ebenezer  Thayer,  John 
L.  Thompson,  George  Trescot,  John  Waring,  Thomas  Waties, 
Beaufort  T.  Watts. 

1813. — Robert  Anderson,  Samuel  G.  Barkley,  Christian  P.  Book- 
ter,  Robert  Bradley,  John  G.  Creagh,  Joseph  Fickling,  Matthew 
Fleming,  James  Gillespie,  Andrew  R.  Govan,  James  W.  Gray, 
Francis  B.  Higgins,  Robert  W.  James,  Josiah  Kilgore,  Thomas 
Lang,  John  Miles  Lee,  George  McDuffie,  David  Harper  Means, 
Robert  Means,  Robert  R.  Nance,  Francis  Peyre,  Jesse  Pope,  Joseph 
J.  Pope,  James  Rodgers,  James  H.  Taylor,  Daniel  H.  Trezevant, 
William  Vernon,  William  B.  Whitaker,  Thomas  Willison,  James 
E.  Wilson,  Roger  M.  Wilson,  John  Wilson,  Robert  M.  Wilson, 
Francis  Withers. 

1814.— Hugh  L.  Allison,  Stobo  Bedon,  Frederick  S.  Belser, 
Symnies  Bonneau,  John  Boykin,  Samuel  Boykin,  Edward  Breed, 


440        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

William  A.  Brickell,  James  Camac,  Alexander  Campbell,  George 
Chisolm,  Robert  T.  Chisolm,  Daniel  Dupre,  John  D.  Edwards, 
Frederick  G.  Eraser,  John  Gaillard,  Samuel  R.  Gibson,  Robert  B. 
Gilchrist,  James  Haig,  John  Lingard  Hunter,  Charles  Huggins, 
William  L.  Kirkland,  Hugh  Swinton  Legare,  Thomas  Legare, 
John  McComb,  David  R.  Williams  Mclver,  William  A.  Marshall, 
Robert  Anderson  Maxwell,  Ramsay  Mayson,  Samuel  J.  Murray, 
Henry  Junius  Nott,  Michael  O'Brien,  John  M.  Partridge,  Philip 
Porcher,  Henry  Ravenel,  Charles  R.  Thomson,  Waddy  Thompson, 
Henry  Trescot,  John  L.  Wallace,  Daniel  James  Waring,  Joshua  Ward, 
William  Weston,  John  W.  Whitaker,  John  White,  Richard  White. 

1815. — Robert  L.  Armstrong,  William  F.  Baker,  William  R. 
Bay,  Paulus  J.  Bell,  Henry  Boylston,  Wesley  Brannon,  Nathaniel 
R.  Eaves,  Enoch  J.  Evans,  A.  J.  B.  S.  Everitt,  John  Farley, 
Pattillo  Farrow,  Edwin  Gaillard,  Thomas  S.  Gaillard,  John  Gayle, 
Elijah  Gibert,  William  H.  Inglesby,  William  H.  James,  James  S. 
Johnson,  Maurice  Harvey  Lance,  William  F.  Lee,  Thomas  Living- 
ston, John  D.  McGrill,  Ezek  H.  Maxcy,  William  H.  McCalla,  John 
L.  McCullough,  William  N.  McDonald,  Albert  A.  Muller,  Edmund 
B.  C.  Park,  John  M.  Pegues,  Ezekiel  Pickens,  Orlando  S.  Rees, 
Thomas  E.  Screven,  John  A.  P.  Scott,  Thomas  Young  Simons, 
William  Skirving  Smith,  James  Simon  Taylor,  Fountain  S.  Winston. 

1816. — Wade  L.  Anderson,  Samuel  Gaillard  Barker,  Joseph 
Vallance  Bevan,  John  W.  Bird,  John  F.  Blake,  Edward  C.  Bre- 
vard,  Arthur  Buist,  David  J.  Campbell,  William  S.  Campbell, 
Mitchell  R.  Cook,  Henry  Deas,  Thomas  Odingsell  Elliott,  James 
Faris,  Patrick  H.  Faulker,  George  E.  Ford,  Simpson  Foster,  Henry 
A.  Gibbes,  Samuel  Gourdin,  Theodore  Gourdin,  James  Hibben, 
Lewis  B.  Holloway,  James  Henderson  Irby,  Edward  D.  C.  Jenkins, 
Charles  J.  McDonald,  John  J.  Mauger,  Richard  F.  Simpson,  John 
Peyre  Thomas,  Thomas  Walter  Thomas,  David  Lewis  Wardlaw, 
John  Nicholas  Williams,  William  S.  Wilson. 

1817. — Archibald  C.  Baynard,  William  C.  Blassingham,  Andrew 
Pickens  Butler,  John  C.  Carter,  James  J.  Caldwell,  Henry  Chiles, 
James  W.  Dinkins,  Robert  Dunlap,  Isaac  M.  Dwight,  John  H. 
Farnandis,  Charles  Fishburne,  Richard  A.  Gantt,  James  Geddes, 
Thomas  Worth  Glover,  Robert  L.  Green,  James  Gadsden  Holmes, 
John  B.  Laurens,  William  J.  McKerrall,  John  Mayrant,  Duncan 
McDonald,  Alexander  R.  Markland  Mclver,  Gavin  McMillan, 
William  McWillie,  John  Miller,  James  P.  Screven,  Thomas  W. 
Taylor,  Hiram  B.  Troutman,  William  T.  Waties. 

1818. — Cornelius  Rain  Ashley,  Samuel  A.  Bailey,  Thomas  Bailey, 
George  Douglass  Blair,  Richard  P.  Creach,  William  J.  Connors, 
Lucius  Cuthbert,  Frederick  William  Davie,  James  C.  Doby,  John 
Doby,  George  Washington  Dunlap,  Samuel  F.  Dunlap,  Robert  Elfe, 
Henry  W.  Grimke,  John  Stobo  James,  Josiah  J.  Kilpatrick, 
John  LaBorde,  William  Lee,  Eli  H.  Lide,  Robert  P.  Lide, 


APPENDIX.  441 

Alexander  Lowry,  Thomas  Lowry,  James  Butler  Mays,  Spencer  J. 
McMorris,  John  T.  Mills,  Edward  Phillips,  Anthony  Bonneau 
Shackleford,  William  Stevens  Smith,  William  H.  Snipes,  Samuel 
M.  Stafford,  Sumter  Taylor,  Francis  Hugh  Wardlaw,  Joseph  Newton 
Whitner,  Samuel  M.  Williamson,  Reuben  C.  Worthington. 

1819.— Henry  Campbell,  John  Campbell,  Ulric  B.  Clark,  William 
R.  Clowney,  Charles  Jones  Colcock,  Mark  Anthony  Cooper,  John 
M.  Deas,  Franklin  H.  Elmore,  James  A  Fleming,  Benjamin  Green, 
Samuel  M.  Green,  Ezra  M.  Gregg,  James  A  Groves,  John  S. 
Groves,  John  M.  Harris,  Samuel  J.  Hoey,  Benjamin  F.  Linton, 
Thomas  Jefferson  Means,  Gustavus  Christopher  Memminger,  Henry 
G.  Nixon,  John  A.  L.  Norman,  Edward  G.  Palmer,  James  S. 
Pope,  William  Porcher,  John  M.  Ross,  Napoleon  Bonaparte  Scriven, 
Samuel  P.  Simpson,  Joseph  Stark  Sims,  James  E.  Smith,  Thomas 
House  Taylor,  William  H.  Taylor,  Edward  Thomas. 

1820. — Spencer  M.  Bobo,  Robert  A.  Brevard,  Patrick  Calhoun 
Caldwell,  Solomon  Cohen,  Jr.,  Charles  A.  Edwards,  James  A.  Formis, 
Thomas  Jefferson  Goodwyn,  Isaac  Hadden,  Francis  Marion  James, 
Paul  Trappier  Keith,  Dixon  H.  Lewis,  Wiley  J.  Matthews,  James 
Robert  Marsh,  William  M.  McElveen,  Jonathan  Maxcy,  Jr.,  Wil- 
liam T.  Nuckolls,  Cotesworth  Pinckney,  William  P.  Sterrett,  John 
C.  Taylor,  James  Terry,  Samuel  R.  Watson,  Samuel  B.  Wilkins, 
Samuel  D.  Williams,  Alexander  Williams,  Matthew  Williams,  John 
R.  Wilson,  John  Benoni  Witherspoon,  Richard  Yeadon. 

1821. — Amzi  Alexander,  Robert  T.  Allison,  James  M.  Beckett, 
Robert  J.  Brownfield,Lawson  Clinton,  George  Washington  Dargan, 
Elias  Horry  Deas,  B.  H.  Fleming,  John  D.  Frost,  Thomas  W. 
Hutson,  Edmund  Irvine,  James  B.  Jeffries,  Maximilian  LaBorde, 
John  C.  McGehee,  Mijainin  S.  McWhorter,  Basil  Manly,  John  D. 
Nance,  John  W.  Paul,  Joseph  Pou,  John  Presley,  D.  Evander 
Reid,  William  E.  Richardson,  John  M.  Rodgers,  James  M.  Sims, 
Eldred  Sirnkins,  Jr.,  Paul  A.  Williams,  John  Perkins  Zimmerman. 

1822.— William  J.  Allston,  Edmund  B.  Bacon,  William  C. 
Beatty,  Charles  L.  Boyd,  Alfred  Bynum,  Michael  W.  Christman, 
William  C.  Clifton,  James  J.  Cole,  Edward  D.  Edwards,  Francis  J. 
Felder,  Peter  W.  Frazer,  William  J.  Grant,  T.  Joseph  Lee,  Evan 
J.  Lide,  George  William  Logan,  John  S.  Palmer,  Amasa  F.  Park, 
George  C.  Player,  Thomson  Trezevant  Player,  William  R.  T. 
B.  Prior,  Francis  Yongue  Simmons,  William  J.  Wilson,  Archibald 
Young. 

1823. — George  Buist,  William  F.  Colcock,  Ebenezer  Cooper, 
John  R.  Davis,  Charles  Glover,  James  W.  Hudson,  Franklin  Israel 
Moses,  Robert  H.  Spencer. 

1824— Carnot  Bellinger,  Theodore  W.  Brevard,  Richard  T. 
Brumby,  James  Martin  Calhoun,  Charles  R.  Carroll,  Lynch  Horry 
Deas,  James  Divver,  Willis  Foster,  John  W.  Geiger,  James  Jones, 
Thomas  B.  Lee,  Edward  Means,  Thomas  Potts  Miller,  Josiah  C. 


442        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Nott,  Jesse  C.  Patrick,  James  J.  Potts,  James  E.  Reese,  Isaac  II. 
Smith,  Arthur  S.  Starr. 

1825 — William  Aiken,  William  W.  H.  Charles,  John  D.  Coalter, 
Thomas  N.  Dawkins.  John  M.  DeSaussure,  Louis  M.  DeSaussure, 
David  St.  Pierre  Dubose,  Thomas  II.  Edwards,  Stephen  Elliott,  Jr., 
Daniel  F.  Faust,  David  Files,  Jr.,  Charles  Freer,  John  Gist,  James 
H.  Hammond,  Horace  C.  Hawes,  Daniel  E.  Huger,  Jr.,Randell  Hunt, 
Robert  James,  Francis  B.  Johnson,  Sherrod  W.  Kennerly,  John 
Leland  Kennedy,  John  Kinsler,  James  F.  Leckie,  Samuel  Watts 
Lesly,  Edward  C.  Mortimer,  Robert  Munford,  S.  Etting  Myers, 
James  Pope,  T.  Loughton  S.  Ramsay,  Theodore  Starke,  Beaufort  A. 
Wallace,  Thomas  Jefferson  Withers,  John  A.  Wragg. 

1826. — Edmund  Bellinger,  Jr.,  John  Charles,  William  Clarkson, 
Artemas  T.  Darby,  Timothy  J.  Keith  Dargan,  Elias  D.  Earle, 
Alexander  L.  Edwards,  William  H.  Ellison,  Albert  G.  Goodwyn, 
Silas  H.  Killer,  Daniel  S.  Henderson,  Henry  W.  Billiard,  William 
Lowndes,  John  G.  Marshall,  Samuel  Warren  Mays,  Thomas  Sumter 
Mays,  Alexander  H.  Mazyck,  Samuel  J.  Palmer,  Thomas  Chiles 
Perrin,  William  Pinckney,  John  A.  Pouncy,  Robert  G.  Quarles, 
William  H.  B.  Richardson,  J.  G.  Schwartz,  William  J.  Taylor, 
Thomas  B.  Tompkins,  Benjamin  C.  Webb,  Thomas  B.  Woodward. 

1827. — Alexander  L.  Baron,  William  Sidney  Burgess,  W.  R. 
Cannon,  W.  W.  Capers,  Francis  B.  Fishbume,  Daniel  R.  Gregg, 
J.  A.  Mobley,  George  G.  Perrin,  John  Schnierlie,  James  R.  Ware, 
Allston  F.  White,  W.  T.  Wragg,  James  Alexander  Young. 

1828.— Joseph  Addison  Black,  William  C.  Black,  Edward  B. 
Brown,  Joseph  N.  Chapman,  John  C.  Faber,  Henry  Foster,  John 
Gough,  William  Hemmingway,  Pearsall  Johnson,  John  A.  Law, 
Gabriel  Manigault,  John  McCreary,  Hiram  McKnight,  Hugh 
McMillan,  Willard  Richardson,  Robert  H.  Speers.  Nicholas  Summer, 
Thomas  F.  Taylor,  George  Washington  Williams,  John  J.  Woodward. 

1829. — John  A.  Allston,  John  G.  Boone,  Wrilliam  J.  Boone, 
William  B.  Crawford,  Randal  Croft,  George  L.  A.  Davis,  John  A. 
Elmore,  John  B.Floyd,  Lewis  R.  Gibb.es,  Joseph  E.  Glover,  George 
Haig,  William  J.  Hard,  Peter  H.  loor,  McMillan  C.  King,  William 
J.  Norris,  James  E.  Nott,  William  R.  Patton,  James  W.  Pierce, 
Solomon  S.  Pope,  Charles  A.  Poelnitz,  William  G.  Ramsay,  Benja- 
min H.  Rice,  Robert  Rogers,  Micah  Jenkins  Roper,  John  C. 
Rowe,  David  J.  Rumph,  Lewis  R.  Sams,  Charles  Stokes. 

1830.-^Richard  Stobo  Bedon,  Eustace  St.  Pierre  Bellinger, 
James  Black,  Lemuel  Boozer,  Andrew  W.  Burnett,  James  G. 
Bythewood,  Thomas  Centre,  Robert  M.  Cherry,  John  Douglass, 
Julius  J.  Dubose,  Martin  R.  Dudley,  Alister  Garden,  Henry  Gibbes, 
Benjamin  Harrison,  John  P.  Jarmon,  Benjamin  F.  Johnston, 
Samuel  MeDowal,  Jacob  B.  McMichael,  Dennis  H.  Mays,  John  A. 
Mills,  William  N.  Park,  Lewis  Jefferson  Patterson,  Julius  C. 
Poelnitz,  Benjamin  C.  Presstman,  John  Preston,  Maynard  D. 


APPENDIX.  443 

Richardson,  Donald  Rowe,  William  S.  Rowe,  Miles  B.  Sams, 
Whitefoord  Smith,  Michael  G.  Spann,  Thomas  Stark,  John  Dargan 
Strother,  Alexander -R.  Taylor,  James  Taylor,  James  D.  Tradewell, 
James  M.  Walker. 

1831. — Robert  Anderson,  Samuel  Russell  Black,  James  W. 
Blakeney,  William  Boykin,  Thomas  C.  Cannon,  Merrit  E.  Oarn, 
Alexander  R.  Ellerbe,  Samuel  Einanuel,  Thomas  J.  Fair,  Robert  J. 
(rage,  Samuel  W.  Gibbes,  Richard  S.  Gladney,  Robert  M.  Gourdin, 
William  R.  Hagood,  James  Thomas  Harrison,  William  M.  Hutson, 
J.  Madison  Johnston,  John  M.  Kirk,  John  C.  Kilpatrick,  William 
Latta,  Elias  C.  Leitner,  Thomas  M.  Lyles,  George  G.  McBride, 
Donald  McQueen,  Andrew  G.  McGrath,  Henry  W.  Manigault, 
Charles  W.  Miller,  Claudean  Bird  Northrop,  Isaac  Porcher,  Wil- 
liam Mazyck  Porcher,  John  T.  Sloan,  James  A.  Strobhart,  Henry 
Summer,  James  H.  Thornwell,  James  N.  Toney,  Andrew  P. 
Venson,  Jabez  R.  Wescoat,  James  Harvey  Witherspoon. 

1832. — James  R.  Aiken,  W.  M.  Armstrong,  C.  Richard  Furman 
Baker,  Hardy  C.  Canant,  J.  P.  Cole,  Thomas  Priestly  Cooper,  E.  P. 
Cosnahan,  Peter  James  Couturier,  William  Currell,  Samuel  Donelly, 
Thomas  C.  Dupont,  Erasmus  Powe  Ellerbe,  S.  J.  Ervin,  Walter 
Fernandis,  James  M.  Gage,  John  Lewis  Gervais,  William  Henry 
Harrison,  Philip  C.  Kirk,  Joseph  W.  Lesesne,  James  Lewis  Lesly, 
Joseph  Lyons,  E.  McCullock,  Thomas  Reese  McFaddin,  John  Hugh 
Means,  Nelson  Mitchell,  William  F.  Percival,  Peter  C.  Porcher, 
Henry  W.  Ravenel,  James  Marion  Sims,  Jacob  W.  Strobhart, 
Washington  Toney,  Samuel  Wilds  Trotti,  George  McC.  Witherspoon. 

1833. — Thomas  L.  Barnett,  Robert  L.  Burns,  John  Threewits 
Chappell,  Langdon  Cheves,  David  Camden  DeLeon,  John  English, 
Peter  Gourdin,  James  G.  Hall,  Laurent  D.  Hallonquist,  James 
Hamilton,  Elisha  Hamblin,  Charles  C.  Hay,  Benjamin  Rush  Jones, 
Christopher  Jones,  J.  W.  Jones,  Robert  Kilpatrick,  Benjamin 
Franklin  Massey,  George  Leonidas  Massey,  Hugh  R.  Miller,  John 
B.  Morton,  Henry  Alston  Owens,  Josiah  Patterson,  Adolphus 
Edward  Pearson,  Alfred  Raoul,  John  W.  Rice,  Napoleon  Gustavus 
Rich,  John  C.  Robinson,  James  Simons,  Thomas  B.  Taylor,  Benj. 
F.  Trapier,  James  H.  Trapier,  Joseph  James  Wardlaw,  John 
Watson,  Greorge  Washington  Westcoat,  Benjamin  F.  Williamson, 
George  L.  Williamson,  Boykin  Witherspoon. 

1834. — James  S.  Alston,  James  Noble  Baskin,  Milledge  Luke 
Bonham,  William  F.  Daniel,  John  Chesnut  Deas,  Samuel  M.  Earle, 
Elisha  Young  Fair,  Peter  C.  Gaillard,  Sanders  Lestergette  Glover, 
Robert  Laroche  Heriot,  Benjamin  R.  Jenkins,  John  S.  Marion, 
William  E.  Martin,  James  Patterson,  Benjamin  Franklin  Reid, 
James  S.  Reid,  Thomas  Jefferson  Seibles,  Charles  Pinckney 
Sullivan,  John  Summer,  J.  Theus  Taylor,  John  Wallace,  Benjamin 
Wilkinson. 

1835. — William   Blanding,  John   Henry   Boatwright,  Gustavus 


444        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Adolphus  Cain,  Daniel  J.  C.  Cain,  Mathias  Clarke,  Thomas  Baker 
Haynesworth,  W.  S.  Jenkins,  David  Johnson,  Charles  Kershaw, 
Edward  Mariigault. 

1836. — James  T.  Baskins,  Levi  S.  -Bowers,  Benjamin  Rush 
Campbell,  Isaac  Foreman,  George  M.  Gunnels,  Elias  Hall,  Wade 
Hampton,  Jr.,  Shields  L.  Hussey,  Jacob  Pearson,  John  Jacob 
Seibles,  Arthur  Simkins. 

1837. — George  A.  Addison,  George  M.  Bates,  James  L.  Baxtrom, 
James  J.  Boyd,  Campbell  Robert  Bryce,  Benjamin  Franklin 
Buckner,  Simeon  J.  Chapman,  Iley  Coleman,  Abram  D.  Cleckley, 
Jonathan  R.  Davis,  Edwin  H.  DeLeon,  Benjamin  Elliott,  John  N. 
Frierson,  James  E.  L.  Fripp,  Allen  Jones  Green,  James  Washington 
Harrison,  George  E.  Hawes,  Robert  L.  Hart,  G.  Henry,  Albert  P. 
Hill,  Washington  G.  Hunt,  W.  E.  Jenkins,  Christopher  Columbus 
Johnson,  John  A.  Leland,  John  Foster  Marshall,  Orlando  B.  Mayer, 
James  W.  McCants,  John  Laurence  Manning,  William  M.  Mclver, 
William  C.  Mclver,  Hugh  G.  Middletori,  William  C.  Moragne, 
Henry  Muller,  Ezekiel  Pickens  Noble,  John  F.  Pyatt,  Frederick 
Raoul,  Duncan  W.  Ray,  Robert  H.  Shaffer,  James  Munroe  Wallace, 
Louis  Trezevant  Wigfall,  David  J.  Williams,  John  D.  Wilson. 

1838. — Thomas  Salmond  Anderson,  Dixon  Barnes,  Edmund  E. 
Bellinger,  Edward  Mortimer  Boykin,  George  S.  Brown,  James 
Cantey,  William  Davie  DeSaussure,  Nathan  H.  Davis,  James  H. 
Elliott,  Alexander  Gregg,  George  Cooper  Gregg,  William  R.  Goss, 
Samuel  H.  Hay,  Oliver  J.  Hart,  Joseph  Cox  Haynesworth,  Henry 
Alexander  Jones,  Isaac  Lesesne,  Samuel  J.  Marshall,  Leslie 
McCandless,  Allen  T.  Mclver,  Edward  F.  Morrall,  Robert  B. 
Muldrow,  Charles  P.  Pelham,  Lawrence  Benton  Prince,  John  E. 
Rivers,  James  .W.  Robert,  Edward  Anderson  Salmond,  S.  John 
Singletary,  William  H.  Sinkler,  Mathew  Richard  Singleton,  John 
C.  Smith,  David  G.  Sparks,  William  H.  Stringfellow,  Edward 
Smith  Tennent,  James  H.  Wilson,  C.  Bruce  Walker,  John  Wither- 
spoon. 

1839.— William  H.  Evans,  Daniel  Flood,  David  E.  Frierson, 
James  G.  Gilchrist,  James  Burgess  Gordon,  Isaac  M.  Hutson, 
Henry  Campbell  King,  Horace  W.  Leland,  Isaac  N.  Lenoir, 
Lorraine  McCord,  Warren  A.  Muldrow,  Joseph  Palmer,  Henry  F. 
Porcher,  Julius  St.  Julien  Pringle,  Samuel  A.  Randell,  Vans 
Randell,  William  W.  Renwick,  Charles  Augustus  Stanhope  Sams, 
Andrew  Baxter  Springs,  John  S.  White,  Benjamin  H.  Wilson, 
John  J.  Wilson. 

1840.— William  Isaac  Ball,  William  M.  Bostwick,  Samuel 
Bradley,  John  Taylor  Brown,  Joseph  F.  Bythewood,  Paul  Green 
Chappell,  James  B.  Dawkins,  Wilmot  Gibbes  DeSaussure,  Peter  C. 
Edwards,  Chesly  D.  Evans,  John  Taylor  Goodwyn,  Evander  A. 
Gregg,  James  M.  Grirnke,  Wesley  Harper,  Stephen  Elliott  Haber- 
sham,  Columbus  Haile,  Thomas  M.  Hanckel,  John  Oldfield  Heriott, 


APPENDIX.  445 

Joseph  A.  Johnson,  John  Berwick  Legare,  William  A.  Lucas, 
Heyward  Manigault,'  John  D.  McCullough,  John  Crosskey  Oswald, 
Thomas  E.  Peck,  Haskell  Rhett,  Josiah  Scott,  John  Gibbes 
Shoolbred,  Edward  Darrell  Smith,  Leonidas  W.  Spratt,  Samuel 
Tompkins,  William  Alexander  Walker,  Daniel  J.  J.  Wilkinson, 
William  F.  Whaley,  Samuel  H.  Wilds,  Richard  S.  Wright. 

1841. — Joseph  D.  Aiken,  John  Moore  Anderson,  Samuel  II. 
Bacot,  James  Douglas  Blanding,  Robert  Bentham  Boylston,  Samuel 
E.  Bratton,  Cornelius  D.  Burckmyer,  William  B.  Carlisle,  James 
Davis,  Alfred  Huger  Dunkin,  James  F.  Ervin,  John  P.  Fell, 
Eben  B.  Flagg,  Frederick  William  Fraser,  William  Godfrey, 
Winchester  Graham,  Edward  Gregg,  Julius  St.  Julien  Guerard, 
Christopher  Fitzsirnons  Hampton,  Derrill  A.  Hart,  William  Alston 
Hayne,  Arthur  P.  Hayne,  Richard  E.  Jenkins,  William  F.  Lester, 
James  A.  Mars,  James  B.  McCants,  John  C.  Mclntyre,  Samuel 
McGowan,  Alexander  McQueen,  Edward  B.  Means,  Edward  W. 
Duval  Nesbit,  William  Adger  Player,  William  Alston  Pringle, 
William  H.  Rice,  William  J.  Rivers,  William  Royal,  Edward'  S. 
Rugely,  Marion  Washington  Sams,  Donald  Decatur  Sams,  John  H. 
Screven,  Ralph  Scurry,  Ephraim  M.  Seabrook,  John  G.  Seabrook, 
William  M  Shannon,  Benjamin  R.  Smith,  Albertus  C.  Spain, 
Benjamin  F.  Stairley,  Edward  Fisher  Taylor,  Thomas  Talbird, 
Charles  A.  Thornwell,  Chappell  0.  Trapp. 

1842. — William  W.  Adams,  Wr.  Louis  Anderson,  William 
Armstrong,  John  Gamble  Baskin,  Andrew  W.  Bowie,  B.  Warburton 
Bradley,  J.  Rufus  Bratton,  John  S.  Bratton,  James  Carroll  Brooks, 
John  L.  Broughton,  John  Milleken  Buchanan,  A.  K.  Calhoun, 
Charles  Louis  Crane,  W.  Mosely  Fitch,  William  Washington  Fripp, 
John  Milledge  Galphin,  Robert  H.  Goodwyn,  Halcot  Pride  Green, 
Isaac  Paul  Grimball, .James  C.  Hicklin,  Joseph  C.  Hooper,  Samuel 
Jones,  Benjamin  Johnson,  James  Kincaid,  Edward  Kinsler,  J.  M. 
Landrum,  John  F.  Laroche,  J.  W.  Lauhon,  John  W.  Lesly,  Jesse 
T.  Owens,  Edward  G.  Palmer,  William  A.  Paul,  Christopher  C. 
Pegues,  Edward  S.  Percival,  Joseph  B.  Pyatt,  James  W.  Red, 
Frederick  J.  Shaffer,  William  Pinckney  Starke,  Hiram  Tilman, 
James  Davis  Trezevant,  Thomas  B.  Wadlington,  John  S.  Wilson. 

1843. — J.B.  Adams,  David  L.  Anderson,  E.  McKenzie  Anderson, 
Samuel  J.  Barnett,  Benjamin  W.  Dudley  Gulp,  James  Willis  Cantey, 
J.  Lunsford  Douglas,  J.  McFaddin  Gaston,  Julien  E.  Gibbes,  J.  P. 
George,  George  W.  Gill,  Charles  B.  Glover,  John  W.  Harrington, 
George  W.  Hill,  Lawrence  Manning  Keitt,  J.  W.  W.  Marshall, 
Cyrus  Davis  Melton,  James  M.  Perrin,  Thomas  J.  Robertson, 
Franklin  Fripp  Sams,  William  D.  Simpson,  John  Wistar  Simpson, 
John  T.  Wetherall,  David  Roger  Williams,  Thomas  J.  Workman. 

1844. — John    Ball,    William    M.    Bratton,    James    H.    Carlisle, 
Simeon  E.  Caughman,  Charles  Cheves,  David  Creswell,  James  M. 
Crosson,   Henry   C.    Davis,    Richard  Watson   Denton,    A.  Warren 
28 


446        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Debardelaben,  Henry  Bolivar  DeSaussure,  Richard  Manning  Dyson, 
Jacob  C.  Eichelberger,  Edward  Evans,  Andrew  Fuller,  Christopher 
P.  Gadsden,  William  Goodwyn,  William  F.  Baker  Haynesworth, 
William  C.  Kilgore,  Samuel  W.  Leland,  John  Henry  Logan,  Alfred 
M.  Martin,  Andrew  J.  McLaughlin,  Samuel  Mobley,  Patrick  Henry 
Nelson,  Edward  Noble,  William  McKenzie  Parker,  Augustus  H. 
Porcher,  Francis  P.  Porcher,  William  E.  Porcher,  Samuel  Reynolds, 
David  Rice,  Emmet  J.  Seibles,  D.  Sullivan,  William  Wallace, 
Leonard  Williams,  Andrew  Jackson  Witherspoon. 

1845. — Charles  Alston,  Benjamin  Franklin  Arthur,  James  S. 
Boone,  Robert  Boyce,  Augustus  Broyles,  J.  Thornton  Carpenter, 
Henry  Chappell,  Martin  P.  Crawford,  James  E.  Crosland,  Robert 
H.  Deas,  Thomas  Dill,  Jesse  E.  Dubard,  Thomas  Boone  Fraser, 
Edwin  Gaillard,  Robert  Garlington,  Wyatt  J.  Goin,  Theodore  S. 
Gourdin,  Charles  Henry,  Edward  Barnwell  Heyward,  Christopher 
Gadsden  Hume,  Henry  Kinsler,  George  W.  Landrum,  Brown 
Manning,  Edward  Howard  Martin,  Thomas  B.  Neil,  Joseph  James 
Pope,  Thomas  Taylor,  Charles  R.  Thompson,  Peleus  A.  Waller, 
Edward  C.  Whaley,  Laurens  E.  Wilson,  John  S.  Winn,  James  H. 
Wideman. 

1846. — William  E.  Aiken,  Julius  Anderson,  William  Wallace 
Anderson,  Samuel  W.  Buchanan,  James  Boatwright  Crane,  Stephen 
L.  Deveaux,  David  A.  Elliott,  Charles  E.  B.  Flagg,  Ladson 
Lawrence  Fraser,  Henry  William  Harrington,  William  H.  Huger, 
John  K.  Jackson,  Thomas  B.  Jeter,  Samuel  W.  Jordan,  John  C. 
Lang,  Thomas  J.  Lipscomb,  Henry  Mclver,  Isaac  H.  Means,  Jerome 
Charles  Miller,  Richard  Manning  Moore,  Henry  Thomas  Moore, 
Albert  A.  Morse,  William  H.  Parker,  Edward  L.  Patton,  Archibald 
Simpson  Johnston  Perry,  John  Ratchford,  Robert  H.  Reid,  Joseph 
Rice,  James  G.  Spann,  William  Blackburn  Wilson,  Hamilton  G. 
Witherspoon. 

1847.— Orsamus  W.  Allen,  P.  Bacot  Allston,  Henry  William 
Blanding,  Edward  J.  Bostwick,  Henry  Buist,  John  T.  Dupre,  James 
Farrow,  Thomas  Frost,  Summerfield  Massilon  Glenn  Gary,  James  G. 
Gibbes,  William  C.  Gist,  Artimus  Darby  Goodwyn,  John  S.  Green, 
Evander  M.  Griffin,  Edward  Haile,  Oscar  P.  Hay,  William  G.  P. 
Hazel,  Walter  Izard,  S.  Yates  Levy,  James  M.  Lipscomb,  William 
Logue,  Joseph  Manigault,  Dugald  McDermot  McLeod,  Fitz  William 
McMaster,  James  Moultrie,  Alexander  Noble,  Philip  E.  Porcher, 
Francis  D.  Quash,  Robert  Henry  Rembert,  Julius  J.  Sams,  Paul  H. 
Seabrook,  William  B.  Telfourd,  Frederick  L.  Villipigue,  Isaac  T. 
Weston,  Furman  E.  Wilson. 

1848. — James  Picket  Adams,  William  Anderson,  William  Alston, 
John  William  Avery,  Jacob  F.  Belser,  Jesse  T.  Bethea,  Louis 
Septimus  Blanding,  John  Brumfield,  Robert  Hayne  Cheves,  William 
S.  Dogan,  James  B.  Ewart,  Henry  D.  Frazer,  Francis  Gamewell, 
Robert  Henry,  John  B.  Laborde,  Benjamin  H.  Matheson,  Dandridge 


APPENDIX.  447 

McRea,  Julius  T.  Porcher,  Thomas  F.  Porcher,  Edward  J.'  Rembert, 
George  W.  Rodgers,  Edwin  W.  Seibles,  Archibald  J.  Shaw, 
Augustus  M.  Smith,  Samuel  Sparks,  Christopher  H.  Suber,  William 
R.  Tiber,  William  Henry  Talley,  Alexander  N.  Talley,  A.  Wallace 
Thompson,  W.  B.  Thompson,  Charles  S.  West,  William  S.  Whaley, 
W.  Randolph  Withers. 

1849.— D.  Wyatt  Aiken,  Thomas  Ashby,  Samuel  H.  Bailey,  Theo- 
dore G.  Barker,  E.  M.  Baynard,  J.  C.  Bickley,  Samuel  W.  Book- 
hardt,  John  D.  Boyd,  James  Edward  Calhoun,  Jr.,  John  W.  Carlisle, 
Henry  A.  Clinch,  N.  B.  Clinch,  James  Connor,  James  E.  Cureton, 
George  B.  Cuthbert,  John  F.  Debardelaben,  Franklin  Gaillard, 
Rush  F.  Gailiard,  Robert  W.  Gibbes,  Jr.,  Thomas  Girardeau, 
John  E.  Glenn,  Thomas  Jefferson  Glover,  Thomas  T.  Gourdin, 
E.  Jones  Henry,  Thomas  H.  Holleyman,  William  J.  Holt,  Jesse 
Malachi  Howell,  R.  H.  H.  Jordan,  J.  B.  Lang,  George  E.  Leitner, 
William  Z.  Leitner,  William  J.  Ligon,  Thomas  M.  McCants,  J.  Y. 
Mclver,  Robert  H.  McKinnon,  James  H.  Mellichamp,  George 
H.  Moffett,  Isham  Moore,  John  B.  Moore,  Thomas  W.'Neely,  T. 
E.  Nott,  John  C.  Oeland,  P.  J.  Oeland,  William  C..Poe,  Octavius 
T.  Porcher,  Percival  Porcher,  Rufus  K.  Porter,  William  L.  Pou, 
Charles  Richardson,  John  Peter  Richardson,  John  E.  Robertson, 
R.  F.  Ross,  Edward  J.  Seabrook,  J.  L.  Shanklin,  E.  C.  Simkins, 
Charles  H.  Simonton,  Wrilliam  Stevens,  Franklin  A.  Tompkins, 
Daniel  Tucker,  J.  H.  Tucker,  William  H.  Wallace,  Thomas  E. 
Wannamaker,  W.  Weston,  J.  Evans  White. 

1850. — Samuel  Adams,  William  Samuel  Alston,  Adam  Perry 
Amaker,  William  Franklin  Ayer,  John  E.  Bacon,  Robert  W.  Barn- 
well,  Jr.,  Robert  C.  Beck,  John  Bratton,  Robert  M.  Braerly, 
James  M.  Buford,  James  M.  Carson,  John  T.  Cauthen,  Hugh  L. 
Charles,  David  G.  Coit,  McNeely  Dubose,  Robert  McFaddin 
Durant,  Berryman  W.  Edwards,  George  M.  Eichelberger,  William 
Eichelberger,  Wm.  C.  S.  Ellerbe,  Stephen  Elliott,  Alfred  F. 
Felder,  William  Burt  Eraser,  States  Rights  Gist,  John  V.  Glover, 
Joseph  Glover,  Thomas  Jefferson  Goodwyn,  Jr.,  Wm.  H.  J.  Govan, 
Langdon  C.  Haskell,  E.  S.  J.  Hays,  Joseph  R.  Hill,  Saunders  G. 
Jamison,  Edward  E.  Jenkins,  Peter  H.  Larey,  Robert  Lebby,  Robert 
Charles  McFadden,  James  P.  MacFie,  George  Hunter  McMaster, 
Gabriel  H.  McPheeters,  Charles  E.  Maybin,  M.  Berry  Metts, 
John  H.  Miller,  William  C.  Mitchell,  John  Glover  Mobley, 
William  G.  Muller,  Joseph  J.  Murray,  John  A.  Player,  Edwin  H. 
Pooser,  John  Smythe  Richardson,  James  H.  Rion,  Horace  H. 
Sams,  Thomas  E.  Scriven,  J.  R.  Shuler,  Joseph  Berryman  Sloan, 
James  Thomson,  Paul  Thomson,  Elias  Yenning,  James  F.  Walker, 
William  Weaver,  Henry  S.  Williams,  George  McWillie  Williamson, 
John  A.  Wharton,  Robert  Aiken  Yongue. 

1851.— Isaac  M.  Aiken,  Joseph  B.  Allston,  B.  W.  Ball,  T.  C. 
Bauskett,  J.  M.  Beaty,  J.  W.  Bold,  J.  M.  Brice,  A.  Brevard 


448        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Bruinby,  Howard  H.  Caldwell,  Win.  L.  Calhoun,  James  R.  Chal- 
mers,  11.  II.  Clarkson,  John  H.  Elliott,  J.  A.  Ferguson,  A.  Fripp, 
C.  Fripp,  Samuel  Gaillard,  Franklin  S.  Gillespie,  Samuel  J.  Gilles- 
pie, Walter  A.  Goodman,  A.  B.  Gordon,  Douglas  Harrison,  11.  S. 
Heriott,  E.  Herndon,  Joseph  Hill,.  Richard  G.  Howard,  Henry 
Izard,  W.  R.  Jones,  James  P.  Kinard,  J.  G-.  King,  Robert  D.  Linton, 
Simons  Lucas,  Eugene  McCaa,  J.  J.  McDaniel,  J.  S.  McLure,  Win. 

B.  Metts,  W.  S.  N  orris,  J.  R.  Pou,  Wm.  G.  Rice,  David  G.  Rob- 
ertson,  Cato  A.   Seabrook,  J.  M.  Seabrook,  J.  W.  Seabrook,  Wm. 
R.  Taylor,  Samuel  J.  Townsend,  Henry  Tucker,  Robert  L.  Wier. 

1852.— H.  Walker  Adams,  Thomas  W.  Allen,  William  Creighton 
Buchanan,  Augustus  H.  Bush,  James  C.  Calhoun,  J.  Wood 
Davidson,  Nicholas  W.  Edmunds,  A.  F.  Edwards,  William  H. 
Frean,  J.  Brown  Gaston,  J.  Lucius  Gaston,  Peter  E.  Griffin,  Harry 
Hammond,  John  W.  Holman,  J.  Ward  Hopkins,  Joshua  Hezekiah 
Hudson,  William  W.  Irby,  A.  H.  Jackson,  Dennis  F.  Jones,  Ellison 
S.  Keitt,  Nathaniel  R.  King,  James  Gregg  Leitner,  Charles  H. 
Leverett,  J.  William  Livingston,  John  H.  Marshall,  James  McDow- 
ell, Thomas  McLure,  Thomas  E.  McNeill,  William  A.  McPheeters, 
Waddy  Thomson  Means,  Samuel  Warren  JMelton,  Suinter  Robert 
Mills,  John  D.  Neely,  Samuel  Bonneau  Noble,  David  H.  Porter, 
William  Bull  Pringle,  Andrew  Burnett  Rhett,  John  A.  Ruff,  Wm. 

C.  Scott,  Charles  J.  Stroman,  William  M.  Thomas,  Hiram  Alexan- 
der Troutman,    Andrew    Bowie    Wardlaw,   Joel    Adams    Tucker 
Weston,  Joseph  Newton  Whitner,  Jr.,  Jeremiah  N.  Williams,  Leroy 
F.  Youmans. 

1853. — J.  Benjamin  Anderson,  Mason  G.  Anderson,  Lucius 
Cuthbert,  Robert  DeTreville,  John  H.  Evans,  John  Jesse  Goodwyn, 
Charles  Edward  Leverett,  John  Izard  Middleton,  Fritz  W.  Pape, 
James  Wardlaw  Perrin,  N.  C.  Whetstone. 

1854. — John  William  Adams,  John  Hampden  Brooks,  John 
Robinson  Buist,  William  Benjamin  Culp,  William  Lowndes  Daniel, 
Oliver  Hawes  Gillespie,  James  Lowndes,  William  Adams  Marshall, 
Robert  Yongue  Hayne  McMeekin,  Thomas  Peter  Oliver,  John 
Rutledge  Riley,  William  Burriss  Russell,  John  Gaines  Scarbor- 
ough, Benjamin  Rhett  Stuart,  Charles  Pinckney  Townsend,  George 
Sewell  Trezevant,  Joseph  John  Wade,  Joseph  Moore  Ward,  John 
Camden  West,  James  Harrison  Whitner,  Isaac  Dormom  Wither- 
spoon. 

1855. — Patrick  Henry  Adams,  Sanford  W.  Barker,  Jr.,  Josiah 
Bedon,  Warren  Pinckney  Belcher,  Charles  Wesley  Boyd,  Burgh 
Smith  Burnet,  James  Zachariah  Burns,  William  London  Butler, 
James  Chesnut,  Henry  Mazyck  Clarkson,  Morgan  Calhoun  Conner, 
James  Moore  Davis,  Stephen  Carr  DeBruhl,  Jr.,  Jacob  Emanuel 
DeLaMotta,  Henry  William  DeSaussure,  Richard  DeTreville,  Jr., 
Leonard  White  Dick,  Charles  Edward  Dupont,  Alexander  Christie 
Elder,  Charles  Atwood  Fisher,  Charles  Edwin  Fleming,  John  Cant- 


APPENDIX.  449 

zon  Foster,  Joseph  Henry  Foster,  William  Washington  Fraser, 
William  Francis  George.  Alfred  Young  Glover,  Edward  Myddlcton 
Goodwyn,  John  Miller  Harris,  Chesley  Worthington  Herbert,  James 
Robert  Jones,  William  Kennedy,  Jr.,  Thomas  Deas  Leadbetter, 
Thomas  Whitfield  MeOants,  James  McCutchen,  Alexander  Hamil- 
ton McGowan,  David  Gregg  Mclntosh,  Robert  Charles  Mclntyre, 
Adam  Whitfield  Mason,.  Samuel  Earle  Mays,  William  Burney 
Means,  Jr.,  Zlegraan  Phillips  Moses,  James  Witsell  O'Hear,  Philip 
Smith  Postell,  John  Baker  Pou,  John  Preston,  Jr.,  Miles  Brewton 
Pringle,  Francis  Mandeville  Rogers,  William  Seabrook,  John  Ran- 
dolph Shelton,  Hugo  Grotius  Sheridan,  Doctor  Joseph  Simpson, 
Landgrave  Thomas  Smith,  Benjamin  Walter  Taylor,  Rutherford 
Presley  Todd,  John  Robert  Tolbevt,  Richard  Augustus  Tompkins, 
Robert  William  Pinckney  Tompkins,  William  Lee  Trenholm,  John 
Rives  Wade,  Edmund  Rhett  Walker,  Alfred  Wallace,  Alpheus 
Turrentine  Watson,  Robert  Adams  Weston,  John  McKamy  White, 
Benjamin  Franklin  Whitner,  James  Washington  Williams. 

1856. — Preston  Adams,  Thomas  Cooper  Boykin,  John  Hicklin 
Buchanan,  Joseph  Palmer  Cain,  George  Erasmus  Coit,  Harris  Cov- 
ington,  Louis  McPherson  DeSaussure,  William  James  Durant, 
William  Strother  Durham,  George  Milton  Fairlee,  William  Edward 
Ferrini,  Isaac  Newton  Gaston,  Laurent  Berney  Hallonquist,  James 
Pinckney  Harris,  Thomas  Benton  Harris,  Richard  Woodward  Hut- 
son,  Edward  Henry  Kellers,  Guido  Norman  Lieber,  Joseph  Banks 
Lyle,  Adam  Alexander  McKittrick,  Thomas  Bennett  Meniminger, 
Thomas  Allston  Middleton,  John  Robert  Milling,  Whitemarsh  Sea- 
brook  Murray,  William  Judson  Ready,  James  Barkley  Rosser, 
Ossian  Adams  Rutherford,  Robert  Martin  Taft,  Joseph  Patterson 
Thomson,  Joseph  Edgar  Way,  William  Henry  Whitner,  John 
Christopher  Winsmith,  Bartlett  Jones  Witherspoon. 

1857. — Samuel  Gaines  Cothran,  Joseph  P.  Cunningham,  Thomas 
Waties  Dinkins,  Leonidas  Kennedy  Glasgow,  George  Goldthwaite, 
Robert  Bones  Hughes,  Henry  Marsden  Larey,  Milledge  Bonharn 
Lipscomb,  James  Carroll  LaBorde,  Homer  Leonidas  McGowan, 
James  Mclntosh,  Saratis  Franklin  McQueen,  James  Douglas 
Matheson,  Henry  Carleton  Mitchell,  Henry  Junius  Nott,  Thomas 
Erasmus  Powe,  Elias  Lynch  Rivers,  John  Houseal  Thomson,  Thomas 
Sabb  Thomson,  George  Allen  Wardlaw,  William  Henry  White. 

1858. — Talbot  Adams,  Jr.,  Marian  Kennan  Alston,  Frederick  Gus- 
tavus  Behre,  Holloway  Bird,  Usher  Parsons  Bonney,  Simon  Peter 
Boozer,  Edward  Henry  Buist,  William  Robinson  Caldwell,  John 
Chesnut,  Charles  Mayson  Creswell,  Edmund  J.  Felder,  Louis  Perrin 
Foster,  Henry  Frost,  Thomas  Fisher  Gadsden,  Mortimer  Glover,  Smile 
Alexander  Gregg,  William  Chollet  Hallonquist,  Isaac  Hayne,  Orson 
•Valentine  Howell,  Abram  Huguenin,  William  Matthews  Lawton, 
Jr.,  Edgar  Marks  Lazarus,  William  White  Legare,  Thomas  Lyles, 
Andrew  Charles  Moore,  Edward  Burt  Perrin,  Lewis  Wardlaw  Per- 


450        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

rin,  William  Henry  Perrin,  Charles  Cotesworth  Pinckney  Jr., 
Daniel  Townsend  Pope,  Grinike  Rhett,  Julius  Newton  Ross,  Isaac 
Rosser,  William  Cooke  Scott,  William  Jefferson  Singletary,  Willis 
Carey  Smith,  Samuel  Walker  Spencer,  William  Walter  Spencer, 
Robert  Stark,  David  Alphonzo  Todd,  Edward  Wallace,  William 
Clark  Wardlaw,  Elihu  Wesley  Watson,  Jaine?  Grier  White. 

Persons  upon  whom  Honorary  Degrees  have  been  Conferred, 
besides  those  that  are  included  amongst  the  Alumni. — 1807,  John 
Drayton,  LL.D.;  1807,  William  Percy,  D.  D.;  1807,  Richard  Furman, 
D.  D.;  1807,  Joseph  Alexander,  D. 'D.;  1807,  Moses  Waddle,  D. 
D.  1808,  Edward  Hooker,  A.  M.;  1808,  Thomas  Park,  A.M.; 
1808,  Daniel  McCalla,  D.  D.;  1808,  Benjamin  Allen,  LL.D.  1809. 

Montgomery,   D.    D.;    1809,    Henry   Holcombe,    D.    D. 

1812, Flinn,  D.  D.;  1812,  Solomon  Hailing,  D.  D.     1813, 

Nathaniel  Brown,  D.  D.  1814,  Joseph  Sumner,  D.  D.;  1814, 
Aaron  W.  Leland,  D.  D.;  1814,  James  Ramsay,  A.  B.;  1814, 
Samuel  Caldwell,  D.  D.  1815,  Benjamin  M.  Palmer,  D.  D.;  1815, 
James  White  Stephenson,  D.  D.;  1815,  Christopher  Gadsden,  D. 
D,;  1815,  John  M.  Roberts,  D.  D.  1816,  Rene  Godard,  A.  M. 

1817, Waldo,  A.  M.     1818,  William  Capers,  A.  M.     1819, 

Jeremiah  Chaplin,  D.  D.  1833,  Thomas  Cooper,  LL.D.  1834. 
Robert  Henry,  D.  D.  1837,  Reuben  Post,  D.  D.;  1837,  P.  C. 
Gaillard,  A.  M.  1838,  Joseph  Henry,  LL.D.  1839,  Samuel  A. 
Marshall,  A.  M.  1840,  James  W.  McCants,  A.  M.;  1840,  James 
Smith,  A.  B.  1841,  William  H.  Prescott,  LL.D.  1842,  Robert 
W.  Barnwell,  LL.D.  1846,  W.  J.  Hand,  A.  M.  1850,  John 
Bachman,  LL.D.  1852,  John  Douglas,  A.  M.  1853,  J.  B.  Adger, 

D.  D.;  1853,  Henri  Herrisse,  A.  M. 

Names  of  all  /Students  admitted,  into  the  College,  who  in  any  way 
whatsoever  left  it  without  a  Diploma. — 1805-6:  Freshman. — John 

E.  Chesley,  Wilson  Nesbit,  J.  Turner  Rivers.     Sophomore. — William 
Capers,  Charles  Course,  James  Postell,  Robert  Raymond  Reid. 

1806-7:  Freshman. — Charles  Ellis.  Sophomore. — Barnaby 
Branford,  James  Chappel,  Edward  Watson.  Junior. — Stephen  Ford, 
William  Goodwyn,  John  Muldrow. 

1807-8:  Sophomore. — John  Boykin,  Samuel  B.  Cantey,  Daniel 
Fisher,  William  Lang,  John  McKa,  John  Postell,  Timothy  Wil- 
liamson. Junior. — John  Dent,  James  Dinkins,  Daniel  Hart,  Jesse 
Taylor,  Benjamin  Taylor,  Rufus  Mayrant,  John  D.  Murphy,  John 
Stark,  John  F.  Trezevant.  Senior. — George  Davis,  William  Davis, 
John  J.  Goodwyn,  Benjamin  Heriot,  Powel  McRaa. 

1808-9 :  Sophomore. — Frank  Hampton,  James  Martin,  Peter  J. 
Nephew.  Junior. — Henry  Adams,  Jr.,  James  Bowman,  Elias  Dick, 
Charles  Gignilliatt,  Wade  Hampton,  Isaac  Johnson,  Charles  S. 
Sims. 

1809-10 :  Sophomore. — John  Burgess,  James  Holmes,  John  Pope, 
George  Pegues,  Henry  Seibles,  Nathan  Wade.  Junior. — B.  Bostick, 


APPENDIX.  451 

John  T.  Creswell,  Robert  B.  Cuthbert,  John  Neman,  Peter 
Perry. 

1810-11:  Freshman. — William  Fludd,  Robert  Hailes.  Sopho- 
more.— John  B.  Gaston,  William  H.  Hay.  Junior. — Jacob  Guerard, 
Philip  Heron,  James  W.  Mayrant.  Senior. — John  McCord,  Robert 
Lowry,  B.  Thomas  Thomas,  William  Woodward. 

1811-12:  Sophomore. — John  Bell,  Elias  S.  Bennet,  Anthony  T. 
Graves,  Felix  Haile,  Richard  Haile,  Thomas  M.  Stuart,  Thomas 
Taylor,  Tristram  N.  Thomas,  James  B.  White,  William  C.  Young. 
Junior. — John  Burgess,  William  K.  Boykin,  Burrel  B.  Cook,  Robt. 
Giles,  Zachariah  Herndon,  Thomas  Hartley,  James  S.  McGregor, 
Alex.  R.  Parkins,  John  Righton,  Robert  Starke. 

1812-13 :  Sophomore. — Joseph  M.  Alston,  Benjamin  C.  Crapp, 
John  J.  Frierson,  Daniel  A.  Jenkins,  George  D.  Miller,  Francis  G. 
Rolando,  James  Sealey.  Junior. — Alexander  M.  Bochet,  James 
Douglas,  Nathan  Fuller,  James  Ramsay.  Senior. — Robert  Barkley, 
Fred.  W.  Dalton,  John  Gayle,  James  Hopkins,  John  McLeod, 
Charles  N.  Rolando,  Robert  Wilson. 

1813-14:  ySbp/iomore.— Augustus  T.  Gaillard,  Thomas  Mclver, 
William  S.  Partridge,  Philemon  Waters.  Junior. — Joseph  S. 
Bossard,  Thomas  Broughton,  Thomas  Cuthbert,  Jeremiah  Ficklin, 
John  L.  Finley,  Thomas  Goddard,  Robert  Hailes,  Philip  S.  Porcher, 
Thomas  W.  Porcher,  B.  H.  Rutledge,  Joel  A.  Tucker.  Senior. — 
William  A.  Brickell,  Charles  A.  Hunter,  John  Alexander  Keith, 
David  J.  McCord,  William  B.  Nott. 

1814-15:  Freshman. — Z.  Rudolph.  Sophomore. — George  S. 
Smith.  Junior. — James  Johnson,  John  W.  Simpson.  Senior. — 
Thomas  Hutson  Colcock,  William  A.  Graham,  John  Lide,  Melton 
Mellett,  John  Porter. 

1815-16:  Freshman.. — Robert  Hagood.  Sophomore. — E.  Cuth- 
bert, James  E.  Hogg,  John  Izard  Middleton,  Oliver  H.  Middleton. 
Junior. — George  W.  Cuthbert,  William  J.  Eddings,  John  M.  Fludd, 
John  Geddes,  Joseph  Jenkins,  John  Jones,  Solomon  Legare,  John 
Legare,  Isaac  McPherson,  William  Seabrook,  Ephraim  Seabrook, 
Richard  D.  Smith,  John  Townsend,  Henry  Vaughan.  Senior. — 
James  Campbell,  Andrew  Pickens  Earle,  William  Irby,  William  A. 
Mays,  John  P.  Moore,  William  Overstreet. 

1816-17:  Freshman. — Samuel  Chisolm,  Abel  E.  Evans.  So- 
phomore.^-Johu  Adamson,  Wm.  H.  Bonneau,  James  Caldwell, 
Alexander  Campbell,  W.  Falconer,  Frederick  Rutledge  Laurens, 
William  Smith  Price,  Charles  E.  Rowand,  William  Sams,  Richard 
L.  Simms,  Stephen  H.  Maxcy,  William  S.  Price,  Frederick  Rut- 
ledge.  Junior. — William  Baynard,  James  Edings,  Charles  Pinck- 
ney  Elliott,  Hugh  McMillan,  Thomas  Boykin,  John  Chapman, 
John  Herbert,  Hopkins  Holsey,  Joseph  D.  Maybank,  Thomas  J. 
Roach,  Thomas  Singleton,  John  A.  Stuart.  Senior. — John  A. 


452        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Lilly,  John  Hunter,  Samuel  B.  Marsh,  James  Raysor,  Henry  D. 
Roberts. 

1817-18:  Freshman. — William  Carson.  Sophomore. — John  A. 
Edwards,  Thomas  P.  Falconer,  Samuel  P.  Graillard.  Junior. — 
Lemuel  W.  Boykin,  David  Graillard,  John  James,  Charles  A. 
Lide,  E.  A.  Love,  John  D.  Means,  David  Gr.  McKee,  John  J. 
Murrel,  John  C.  Taylor,  William  Webb.  Senior.— William  E. 
Baynard,  Joseph  Fraser,  Nicholas  Hodges,  Thomas  F.  Wil- 
liamson. 

1818—19:  Freshman. — Cornelius  K.  Ayer,  Ludovicus  Harris. 

Sophomore. — John  E.  Irby, Kenner,  Eugenius  A.  Nesbit, 

Abner  B.  Parrott,  William  S.  Partridge.  Junior. — Fitzgerald  Bird, 
John  S.  Bobo,  William  J.  Bobo,  Rhydon  G.  Hill,  Herndon  McKee, 
Richard  S.  Youngblood.  Senior. — John  P.  Richardson,  Thomas 
D.  Singleton. 

1819-20:  Sophomore.— Joseph  W.  H.  Cook,  Charles  A.  De- 
Saussure,  Henry  Dupont,  William  M.  Myers,  M.  H.  Waring. 
Junior. — John  C.  Aiken,  Edmund  Bellinger,  William  A.  Boykin, 
John  J.  Chambers,  Nathan  P.  Cook,  James  S.  Gruignard,  Thomas 
J.  Hailes,  William  L.  Lewis,  Jacob  H.  McMichael,  Ambrose  W. 
O'Bannon,  Cotesworth  Pinckney  Smith.  Senior. — Alexander  J. 
M..Brevard,  Charles  P.  Connors,  John  J.  Murrell,  William  Gr. 
Webb,  James  M.  Witherspoon. 

1820-21  :  Sophomore.— Charles  C.  Strohecker,  J.  W.  Vereen, 
Oliver  Wheeler.  Junior. — Leontine  Butler,  William  H.  H.  Hay, 
Henry  L.  Sims,  Jeremiah  D.  Yates.  Senior. — John  W.  Bacon, 
John  Kilpatrick  Campbell,  John  R.  Gribson,  Charles  T.  Grodbolt, 
William  A.  Groodwyn,  Lodovicus  Harris,  John  J.  Myers,  John 
Phillips, Waties. 

1821-22  :  Freshman. — John  Mixon.  Sophomore. — William 
Brantwaite,  James  Magill,  Hampden  Wigfall.  Junior. — Henry 
J.  Abbott,  John  W.  Baker,  John  D.  Cantzer,  Myer  M.  Cohen, 
Washington  Contourio,  Henry  Fullenwider,  Calvin  Foster,  William 
T.  Grist,  Charles  C.  Henderson,  William  Hopkins,  Thomas  Hopkins, 
Henry  Marshall,  M.  Cohen  Myer,  Charles  Porcher,  John  J.  Potts, 
John  Smythe  Richardson,  Lydall  Saxon,  I.  Donnoni  Witherspoon. 
Senior. — Jeremiah  Brown,  Francis  Eppes,  William  J.  Gault,  Elias 
Horlbeck. 

1822-23  :  Freshman. — John  E.  Carew.  Sophomore. — Robert 
Holmes,  Gr.  J.  Pope.  Junior. — J.  Gr.  Cogdell,  David  Dubose, 

Harris  S.  Evans,  John  Grist, Haskell,  Robert  James,  James  D. 

McWillie.  Senior. — Wm.  M.  Lee. 

1823—24  :  Freshman. — John  Black.  Sophomore. — Henry  Can- 
tey,  James  L.  Edwards,  John  A.  Edwards,  Wilmot  R.  Gribbes, 
Peter  F.  LaBorde,  John  C.  Martin.  Junior. — Henry  B.  Brickell, 
Charles  F.  Butler,  John  R.  Charles,  Arthur  F.  Holmes,  Edward  C. 


APPENDIX.  453 

Keckeley,  William  Myers,  Hezekiah  W.  W.  Rice.  SOH'OI: — John 
31.  B  locker,  James  M.  Daniels. 

1824-25  :  Sophomore. — George  P.  Elliott, Hawkins,  Robert 

Holmes, Levy,  J.  31cCants,  Robert  Saxon.  Junior. — A  Brad- 
ley, Charles  F.  Butler,  Turner  Bynum,  Charles  C.  Gregorie,  Samuel 
McAlliley,  James  R.  Tucker,  George  W.  William.  Senior. — 
Lydall  Saxon. 

1825-26 :  Freshman,— John  M.  Davis,  Wm.  T.  DeWitt,  Wm. 
T.  Holmes.  Sophomore. — H.  Chapman.  Junior. — Joseph  Alston, 
James  C.  Boyd,  William  E.  Boyd,  Martin  Phillips,  John  J.  J. 
Pringle,  James  T.  Starke,  Robert  Henry  Wardlaw.  Senior. — James 
C.  Bonham,  Robert  Bradley,  Algernon  S.  Clifton,  John  P. 
Creyon,  Thomas  English,  William  English,  Benjamin  Fishburne, 
John  M.  Huger,  Hart  S.  H.  31axcy,  Daniel  A.  Zimmerman. 

1826-27  :  Freshman. Arthur, Coachman,  Wm.  Ellerbe. 

Sophomore. Jenkins, Levin, McMahan, Mazyck, 

Augustus  Noel,  Osman  Woodward.  Junior. — William  Boone, 
Edward  Buist,  Henry  S.  Cook,  J.  H.  Degraffenreid,  William  H. 
Gist,  Edward  L.  Goodwyn,  Henry  Haigler  J.  Cordes  Keith, 
Thomas  W.  Lockhart,  Thomas  W.  Porcher,  Thomas  R.  C.  Richard- 
son, Reuben  Ruff,  David  Rumph.  Senior. — Joel  R.  Adams,  Wm. 
B.  Adams,  James  C.  Bonham,  James  Parsons  Carroll,  Robert  F. 
Charles,  James  Davis,  William  Davis.  John  F.  Ervin,  Robert  Fish- 
burne, Henry  Foster,  Henry  L.  Fuller,  Robert  Wilson  Gibbes, 
Isaac  W.  Hayne,  John  N.  Herndon,  David  F.  Jamison,  John  J. 
Landrum,  John  Lofton,  Samuel  McClanahan,  Richard  B.  McMichael, 
Robert  Means,  William  B.  Means,  Robert  Miles,  John  F.  O'Bannon, 
William  Oswald,  Francis  Wilkinson  Pickens,  Reese  Price,  James  B. 
Richardson,  William  W.  Smith,  Thomas  B.  Spratt,  James  W.  Thom- 
son, Henry  H.  Thomson,  Edward  J.  Webb,  Joseph  A.  Woodward. 

1827-28:  Freshman. — Thomas  McQueen.  Sophomore. 

Boyce,  A.  Haig,  George  loor.  Junior. — Thomas  Clarkson,  Edward 
Lowndes,  William  Millikin,  Jonathan  T.  Waties.  Senior. — Thomas 
Furman,  Washington  Miller. 

1828-29:    Sophomore. — John  A.  Scott.    Junior. — Wm.  Roberts. 

1829-30  :  Sophomore. — Peter  S.  Bacot,  Sampson  G.  Boatwright, 
Thomas  G.  Carr,  John  M.  D.  Cheney,  Samuel  Fr  Gibson,  Benjamin 
H.  Johnson,  Henry  W.  McGowan,  Nicholas  A.  Peay,  Benjamin  G. 
Shields.  Junior. — Timothy  Center,  William  T.  Ellerbe,  Francis 
W.  Fickling,  James  M.  Nelson.  Senior. — George  Taylor. 

1830-31  :  Sophomore. — John  Bayle,  William  H.  Cannon,  John 
Gaillard,  Madison  T.  Perry,  Charles  Thomson.  Junior. — William 
L.  Alston",  Thomas  E.  Evans,  George  W.  Lawton,  William  A. 
McKay,  William  McCreary,  Alexander  3Iontgomery,  Samuel  S. 
Stith,  Washington  Taylor,  Thomas  N.  Waul.  Senior. — Andrew  H. 
Cheves,  Peter  "C.  Gaillard,  Benjamin  F.  Scott. 

1831-32  :     Sophomore. — E.    D.    Miller,    Demophon    Tureaud, 


454        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

James  Wheeler.  Junior. — Edward  D.  Bailey,  H.  P.  Johnson, 
John  M.  Lowry,  Lewis  A.  Raoul,  Calvin  P.  Sandefur,  John  C. 
Simkins,  Thomas  J.  Starke,  Henry  T.  Thomson.  Senior. — An- 
drew P.  Calhoun,  Henry  H.  Clark,  William  S.  Lylea,  Rufus  A. 
Nott,  Edward  Porcher. 

1832-1833:  Junior.— H.  W.  Adams,  J.  G.  Adams,  J.  H. 
Adams,  Joel  Adams,  A.  H.  Boykin,  John  A.  Boykin,  W.  H.  W. 
Brooks,  John  B.  Campbell,  Robert L.  Campbell,  Elias  F.  Couturier, 
J.  Paris  Cunningham,  Ephraim  M.  Clarke,  George  Hailes,  Pinck- 
ney  S.  Huger,  David  Johnson,  G.  C.  Muldrow,  Adolphus  G.  Nott, 
Erasmus  H.  Powe,  Govan  Roach,  William  Roper,  Henry  J.  Rowe. 
Senior. — J.  S.  Gibson,  Henry  Gray,  Owen  F.  McCartley,  Abram 
A.  McWillie,  J.  B.  Massey,  Benjamin  B.  Nixon,  John  M.  Pearce, 
Samuel  F.  Rice. 

1833-1834:     Senior. — John  II.  Adams,  Daniel  Johnson. 

1835-36  :  Freshman. — William  F.  Pratt,  James  R.  Scott,  John 
J.  Stoney.  Sophomore. — Robert  Gibbes  Barnwell,  David  L.  Cohen, 

Moorer,  George  F.  Strobhart.  Junior. — Edward  H.  Anderson, 

Thomas  P.  Butler,  Joseph  W.  Doby,  Milton  H.  Fair,  James  L. 
Hunter,  Rollin  H.  Kirk,  W.  S.  McGehee,  Charles  A.  Sparks. 
Senior. — Richardson  Harrison. 

1836-37  :  Freshman. — Theodore  Dawson, Pegues.  Sopho- 
more.— Edward  M.  Chambers,  Benjamin  Hames,  Cheves  Johnson, 
James  Perry,  A.  E.  Moorer,  George  W.  Trezevant.  Junior. — 
George  Allen,  William  S.  Coleman,  D  W.  Cuttino,  P.  M.  Ed- 
monston,  John  H.  Pearson,  Theodore  W.  Percival,  George  W.  Polk. 
Senior. — Augustus  Dorril,  Franklin  English,  James  L.  Gantt,  Wash- 
ington Hunt,  Paul  Johnson,  John  W.  Johnson,  James  W.  Miles, 
Josiah  B.  Perry.  David  J.  Red,  Robert  H.  Rosborough,  Samuel  M. 
Woodbridge. 

1837-38:  Freshman. — Joel  Adams,  Jos.  B.  Cosnahan,  Nathaniel 
Gist,  James  A.  Hart,  Law  H.  Roberts,  Maurice  Simons.  Sopho- 
more.— Charles  T.  Darby,  L.  H.  Fishburne,  Joseph  Gist,  Edwin 
Heriot,  Robert  S.  Hope,  John  C.  R.  Key,  Junius  A.  Mayes,  Ralph 
Perry,  H.  B.  Rugely.  Junior. — Francis  Capers,  John  A.  Noble, 
Carver  Randall,  Owen  Richardson.  Senior. — W.  B.  Hutchinson, 
John  J.  McMahan,  Lewis  E.  Simons. 

1838-39:  Freshman.— L.  M.  Ayer,  Charles  Bentham,  Henry  F. 
Ferguson,  W.  B.  Fickling,  James  M.  Murphy.  Sophomore. — Wil- 
liam Henry  Belton,  Edward  A.  Gibbes,'  Wesley  Graham,  R.  E. 
Jenkins,  R.  J.  Larroche,  Charles  Lining,  Thomas  C.  Means,  Robert 
C.  Myers,  William  Smith,  W.  R.  Thompson,  Thomas  B.  Whaley. 
Junior. — Joseph  W.  Fitch,  Elias  Henry.  Senior. — Thomas  B. 
Bird,  Preston  S.  Brooks,  John  Coleman,  Edward  Magrath. 

1839-40  :  Freshman.— William  Black.  Sophomore.— Robert 
Campbell,  Ralph  Bailey,  Henry  S.  Hayne,  Edward  Jermain,  John 
F.  Portius,  Henry  S.  Rogers,  James  Stoney.  Junior. — Oliver  S. 


APPENDIX.  455 

Gregg,  James  C.  Kennedy,  William  H.  Roberts,  Benjamin  S. 
Whaley,  Radcliff  Wilson.  Senior. — Joseph  S.  Crane,  John  S.  Cripps. 

1840-41 :  Freshman. — Robert  Fuller,  S.  G.  Henry,  T.  G.  Law- 
ton,  Richard  Laroche, Mayrant.  Sophomore. Boone, 

James  Boykin,  J.  H.  Cuthbert,  Adam  Felder,  Samuel  Earle  Harri- 
son, F.  C.  Johnson,  Samuel  Prioleau.  'Junior. — B.  W.  Blocker, 
Edward  D.  Laroche.  Senior. — Halcot  Jones  Pride,  Alexander  S. 
Salley,  James  C.  Swinton. 

1841—42:    Freshman. — Robert  Brown,  Thomas  Black,  William 

D.  Cannon,  A.   P.   Martin,  Benjamin  R.    Maybin,    C.    J.    White. 
Sophomore. — P.   W.  Blackburn,  F.   W.  Debardelaben,  W.  Ford, 
John  H.  Logan,  T.  R.  McConnel,  G.  D.   Peeples,  T.   Gr.  Prioleau, 
John   Ramsay,   William  Workman.     Junior. — D.    H.   Bythewood, 
R.  B.  Clarke,  Edward  H.  Earle,  F.  H.  Earle,  J.  W.   Ervin,  T.  E. 
Haile,  J.  L.  Kilgore,  H.  T.  Stokes,  M.  Weston,  T.  J.  Workman, 
George  Young.      Senior. — R.  J.  M.  Dunnovant,  William  A.  Hay, 
Duncan  Lang,  B.  B.  McCaa,  Adam  McWillie,  James  P.  Starke,  J. 

E.  Tobin,  J.  C.  Warley. 

1842—43 :  Sophomore. — Augustus  Barnett,  Boggan  Cash,  John 
Cantey,  David  C.  Means,  John  B.  Tilman,  Elisha  J.  Waller. 
Junior. — H.  R.  Aiken,  James  Crawford,  John  S.  Dyson,  R.  M. 
Frierson,  Thomas  Jones,  J.  K.  Vance.  Senior. — R.  H.  Bishop, 
T.  L.  Goodwyn,  W.  L.  Hunter,  Thomas  Lang,  J.  L.  Wilson. 

1843-44:  Freshman.— John  T.  Bryce,  William  D.  Gregorie, 
Milton  G.  Roberts,  John  H.  Tucker,  Thomas  H.  Willingham. 
Sophomore. — Luther  M.  Caldwell,  Alexander  Herbemont,  Edward 
Sill,  Edward  C.  Steele.  Junior. — David  Adams,  J.  H.  Addison,  L. 
H.  Belser,  E.  Dubose,  John  B.  Eichelberger,  Robert  Johnson,  E. 
M.  Keith,  Robert  Maxwell,  Charles  J.  Shannon,  John  W.  Stark, 
W.  L.  Williamson.  Senior. — Frederick  L.  Green,  Thomas  Ravenel, 
D.  Sullivan,  Robert  H.  Simons. 

1844-45:  Sophomore. — Louis  M.  Gillam,  Augustus  Shoolbred, 
H.  Walker.  Junior.— Goddard  Bailey,  C.  E.  Broyles,  Ren& 
Ravenel.  B.  R.  Scott,  Silas  P.  Thomas.  Senior.— Whitefield  B. 
Brooks,  Stanmore  Griffin. 

1845-46:  Freshman. — Benjamin  L.  Posey.  Sophomore. — Wil- 
liam C.  Foreman,  John  A.  Michel,  Theodore  Parker,  Edward  M. 
Seabrook,  John  R.  Scott,  D.  H.  Trezevant,  Robert  J.  Turnbull. 
Junior. — Jesse  T.  Bethea,  John  T.  Green,  Thomas  C.  Hooper, 
James  T.  O'Bannon,  Richard  S.  Porcher,  Thomas  C.  Smith,  John 
Sistrunk,  P.  Smith.  Senior. — W.  H.  Campbell,  Richard  C.  Lau- 
rens,  Alexander  D.  Sparks. 

1846-47:  Freshman.— David  E.  Ewart,  John  P.  Feaster,  Wil- 
liam Geiger,  James  W.  Lipscomb,  W.  E.  Seabrook,  W.  Seabrook, 
Lucius  Williamson.  Sophomore. — A.  L.  Eichleberger,  Calhoun 
Haile,  Edward  B.  Lang,  Thomas  M.  Legare.  Junior. — John  W. 


456        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Avery,  Perry  Butler,  Edward  B.  Cuthbert,  T.  L.  Daniel,  Edward 
E.  Elmore,  John  D.  Hopkins,  William  G.  Kennedy,  M.  J.  Kirk, 
Charlton  H.  Lelarid,  William  W.  Logan,  Robert  Means.  Senior. — 
C.  L.  Anderson,  Henry  Middleton. 

1847-48:  Freshman.— T.  B.  Brown,  E.  B.  Donnelson,  F.  C. 
Dunlap,  H.  W.  Goin,  William  M.  Otterson,  R.  C.  Starr,  T.  H. 
WTade.  Sophomore. — Benjamin  Bailey,  E.  J.  Belser,  Joseph  Hey- 
ward,  J.  Hopkins,  R.  E.  Johnston,  Giles  J.  Patterson,  M.  J.  Sanford, 
George  H.  Waddell.  Junior. — John  S.  Barn  well,  Charles  P. 
Cheves,  Benjamin  H.  Green,  Henry  M.  Haig,  Thomas  Jones,  Wil- 
liam Lowndes,  Belton  Mickle,  J.  B.  Nott,  B.  S.  Screven,  Henry  W. 
Waties.  Senior. — T.  H.  Johnson. 

1848--49:  Freshman.— W '.  H.  Seabrook.  Sophomore.— 3 '.  B. 
Blackburn,  Thomas  Woodward,  W.  E.  Zimmerman.  Junior. — 
Sims  E.  Brown,  Thomas  Bruce,  L.  D.  Connor,  P.  G.  Gourdin,  Wil- 
liam Haile,  R.  C.  Johnston,  J.  G.  Logan,  A.  Miot,  J.  C.  Seabrook. 
•Senior. — William  Fuller,  J.  J.  Mickell,  Julian  Porcher. 

1849-50:  /Sophomore. — J.  D.  Allen,  Austin  Black,  Gaillard 
Fitzsimmons,  J.  M.  Hobdy,  Joseph  Jones,  S.  J.  King,  W.  E.  Mc- 
Call,  H.  M.  Parker.  Junior.— E.  F.  Allston,  Jesse  Berne,  E.  G. 
W.  Butler,  Edward  Brevard,  J.  0.  G.  Campbell,  Richard  Bruce, 
E.  M.  Davis,  H.  R.  Easterling,  W.  C.  Freeman,  J.  G.  Hardy,  W. 
Heyward,  W.  C.  Johnston,  C.  C.  Jones,  Samuel  Logan,  Warren 
Nelson,  L.  C.  Nesbitt,  J.  J.  Rodgers,  O.  D.  Steele,  W.  L.  Wither- 
spoon.  /Senior. — Reuben  0.  Starke. 

1850-51:  Freshman. — J.  J.  Frierson.  /Sophomore. — W.  M. 
Bradford,  Henry  Laurens,  C.  W.  Mayrant.  Junior. — R.  C.  Fer- 
guson, H.  M.  Parker.  Senior. — J.  H.  Anderson,  J.  A.  Baker,  J. 
G.  Barnwell,  W.  C.  Freeman,  G.  S.  James,  W.  C.  Johnstone,  J.  S. 
Moore,  A.  Sanders,  M.  Stuart. 

1851-52:  Freshman. — J.  R.  S.  Alston,  W.  J.  Goodman,  R.  H. 
Rives,  H.  J.  Seibels,  H.  J.  Smith,  J.  R.  Stuart.  Sophomore. — 
Joel  W.  Anderson,  E.  L.  Bailey,  R.  H.  Barnwell,  Lemuel  Boykin, 
J.  Dozier  Broome,  S.  N.  Burgess,  W.  H.  Cain,  A.  L.  Caldwell,  J. 
L.  Chapman,  P.  S.  Clarke,  D.  D.  R.  Cole,  J.  A.  Dozier,  T.  Stobo 
Farrow,  G.  H.  Fort,  J.  C.  Fort,  W.  E.  Fripp,  J.  W.  Graham,  W. 
C.  Inglis,  J.  M.  Kinard,  J.  C.  Levy,  T.  J.  Lipscomb,  W.  R. 
McConnell)  J.  R.  McKelvy,  Peyton  A.  Philpott;  T.  P.  Stoney,  A. 
G.  Turnbull,  J.  T.  Walsh,  A.  L.  Yongue,  E.  H.  Youngblood. 
Junior. — Robert  Adams,  T.  P.  Alston,  E.  M.  Atkinson,  Edward 
Barnwell,  T.  C.  Bookter,  R.  W.  Boyd,  J.  F.  Calhoun,  T.  B.  Clark- 
son,  W.  C.  Clifton,  J.  C.  Colt,  D.  B.  DeSaussure,  A.  J.  Dozier,  J. 
E.  Dunlop,  P.  A.  Eichelberger,  Paul  Fitzsimmons,  J.  G.  Gaillard, 
M.  W.  Gary,  T.  H.  Go3ttee,  J.  W.  Hance,  T.  G.  Herbert,  M.  N. 
Holstein,  E.  Kinder,  Theodore  Lang,  P.  P.  Lock,  James  Lowndes, 
M.  C.  McLemore,  E.  C.  McLure,  B.  W.  Means,  D.  H.  Mordecai, 


APPENDIX.  457 

J.  A.  Napier,  E.  W.  Nowell,  T.  P.  Oliver,  J.  R.  D.  Palmer,  J.  D. 
Porcher,  W.  A.  Ramsay,  Edmund  Rhett,  J.  G.  Riley,  J.  B.  Steed- 
man,  H.  R.  Stephens,  J.  S.  Strong,  J.  M.  Tinimons,  R.  J.  Willing- 
ham,  T.  W.  Woodward,  B.  F.  Young.  Senior. — 0.  llawcs 
Marshall,  W.  E.  Zimmerman. 

1852-53:  Freshman,— D.  W.  Barton,  P.  W.  Herbert,  J.  H. 
Powe,  C.  Prentiss.  Sophomore. — B.  M.  Cromwell,  N.  W.  Cul- 
elasure,  T.  L.  Cuthbert,  B.  A.  Hallum,  W.  H.  Hawkins,  R.  H. 

Scaife,  Anderson  Wannainaker.  Junior. William  Freeman,  C. 

O'Neall. 

1854:  Freshman. — S.  A.  Goodman,  R.  H.  Martin.  Sophomore. 
—John  Beatty,  W.  Hampton  Gibbes,  W.  Preston  Hix,  J.  S.  A. 
Legare,  J.  C.  McLemore,  Wm.  Martin,  Jr.,  Francis  Moore,  J.  T. 
Rhett.  Junior. — Hamlin  Seattle,  W.  Scott  Brice,  W.  J.  Duffle, 
J.  B.  Erwin,  Gr.  P.  Harley,  Gr.  M.  Jordon,  T.  Hutson  Lee,  J.  E. 
McKnight,  Robert  Martin,  Samuel  Perry  man,  D.  Irwin  Rast,  H.  A. 
Seabrook,  Allen  Stuart,  Albert  R.  Taber,  R.  J.  White,  Anderson 
Whiteside.  Senior. — James  D.  McConnell. 

1855:  Freshman. — C.  E.  L.  Allison,  H.  Cenas,  F.  J.  Moses,  Jr., 

Ottolingui,  Albert  Rhett,  M.  G.  B.  Scaife,  W.  H.  Sullivan. 

Sophomore.— Hyder  D.  Bedon,  C.  J.  Bryan,  F.  II.  Elmore,  T.  H. 
Harllee.  Junior.— T.  H.  D.  Hanahan,  D.  B.  Mod-eight.  Senior. 
— Jesse  Beaty,  A.  M.  Reid. 

1856:  Freshman. — William  Allen,  Thomas  P.  Cleveland,  Edward 

B.  Cureton,  Charles  Franklin  Davis,  Rawlins  Lowndes.      /Sophomore. 
— Cornelius   Ayer  Butler,   James  Morgan  Butler,  Edward  Belton 
Dunlap,    DeSaussure   Edwards,    Benjamin    C.    Garlington,    James 
Garland    Hardwick,  Charles   James    McDowall,  John  J.  Roberts, 
William    Alston   Sanders.     Junior. — Charles    H.    Barnwell,    John 
Smith    Barnwell,  W.  Capers  Bird,    Alfred    Brevard,  Matthew   C. 
Butler,  Thomas  W.  Fuller,  G.  Washington  Jordan,  John  C.  Mc- 
Clenaghan,  Duncan   Mclntyre,  Joseph  M.  Meggett,  Edward  Niles, 
James   Deas  Nott,  Albert  Rhett,   Wm.  B.  Seabrook,  William  H. 
Taylor.      Senior. — Edward   M.  Barnwell,    George  R.   Black,  John 
Thomson  Darby,  James  D.  Ferguson,  Robert  F.  Graham,  .William 

C.  Preston,    Jr.,   Robert  L.  Preston,   Robert   Pringle,  Albert  M. 
Rhett,  John  Taylor  Rhett,  Wm.  Hutson  Wigg. 

1857 :  Freshman. — Robert  McCay. — Sophomore. — Theodore  D. 
Dupont,  Samuel  A.  Goodman,  Zebulun  Mobley,  Philip  D.  Morcock. 
Junior. — Edwin  Bookter,  John  D.  Kennedy,  Philip  P.  Mazyck, 
Robert  W.  Memminger,  Wm.  M.  Myers,  Lucius  Northrop,  Wm.  H. 
Perry,  Thomas  P.  Sterling.  Senior. — James  F.  Caldwell,  Wm. 
Calhoun  Keith,  Wm.  W.  Walker,  Jr. 

1858  :  James  M.  Dent,  William  B.  Gracey,  Isaac  C.  Moses, 
James  P.  Royall,  James  T.  Scott.  Sophomore.— Philip  P.  Barker, 
Alex.  D.  Barrow,  Baylis  E.  Boozer,  Lemuel  H.  Boozer,  Andrew 
P.  Butler,  James  Caldwell,  Alfred  E.  Doby,  James  T.  Douglass, 


458        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Thomas  M.  Durant,  Benj.  P.  Fishburne,  Saunders  Glover,  Elliott  M. 
Lucas,  Andrew  F.  O'Bryan,  Milledge  A.  Roundtree,  Hugh  Strong, 
William  Thomson,  George  White,  John  K.  Young.  Junior. — 
Woodward  Barnwell,  Joseph  W.  Garvin,  John  Kennerly,  John  Fox 
Miller,  James  Simons,  Jr.  Senior. — Wm.  J.  Bull,  Jr.,  John  C. 
Cain,  John  Collins,  Richard  V.  Gist,  George  W.  Marshall,  A.  G. 
Mills,  John  C.  Minott,  Reuben  B.  Patterson,  James  A.  Ross,  Wm. 
D.  Rutherford,  Maximilian  0.  Scott. 

Honors  awarded  from  the  period  of  the  first  Commencement,  to 
the  Commencement  in  1858,  inclusive. — The  first  honor  is  awarded 
to  the  Valedictory  Orator,  and  the  second  to  the  Salutatory: 

1807. — Walter  Crenshaw,  Valedictory;  John  Caldwell,  Salutatory. 

1808  — James  R.  Gregg,  Valedictory;  John  Murphy,  Salutatory. 

1809. — James  L.'  Petigru,  Valedictory;  Alexander  Bowie,  Saluta- 
tory. 

1810. — James  Dillett,  Valedictory;  William  Lowry,  Salutatory. 

1811. — B.  J.  Earle,  Valedictory;  William  Arthur,  Salutatory. 

1812.— Henry  L.  Pinckney,  Valedictory;  John  B.  O'Neall, 
Salutatory. 

1813.— George  McDuffie,  Valedictory;  John  G.  Creagh;  Salu- 
tatory. 

1814. — Hugh  S.  Legare,  Valedictory;  Henry  Trescott,  Salutatory. 

1815. — Elijah  Gibert,  Valedictory. 

1816.— David  L.  Wardlaw,  Valedictory;  Henry  A.  Gibbes,  Salu- 
tatory. 

1817. — Charles  Fishburn,  Valedictory;  Archibald  Baynard,  Salu- 
tatory. 

1818. — Francis  H.  Wardlaw,  Valedictory;  Josiah  J.  Kilpatrick, 
Salutatory. 

1819. — Thomas  H.  Taylor,  Valedictory;  C.  G.  Memininger, 
Salutatory. 

1820. — James  Terry,  Valedictory;  Richard  Yeadon,  Salutatory. 

1821. — Basil  Manly,  Valedictory;  Amzi  W.  Alexander,  Salu- 
tatory. 

From,  this  time  the  Salutatory  was  declared  by  the  Board  of 
Trustees  to  be  the  first  honor,  and  the  Valedictory  the  second. 

1822. — William  J.  Wilson,  Salutatory;  J.  W.  Grant,  Valedictory. 

1823. — Wm.F.  Colcock,  Salutatory;  Robert  Spenser,  Valedictory. 

1824. — Richard  T.  Brumby,  Salutatory;  James  W.  Daniel,  Vale- 
dictory. 

1825. — Randall  Hunt,  Salutatory;  T.  J.  Withers,  Valedictory. 

1826. — Edmund  Bellinger,  Salutatory;  R.  G.  Quarles,  Valedic- 
tory. 

1827. — This  was  the  year  of  a  great  rebellion,  when  twenty-four 
Seniors  were  expelled,  and  it  appears  that  no  honors  were  awarded. 

1828. — Nicholas  Summer,  Salutatory;  Hiram  McKnight,  Vale- 
dictory. 


APPENDIX.  459 

1829.— Lewis  R.  Gibbes,  Salutatory;  Wm.  J.  Boone,  Valedictory. 

1830. — B.  F.  Johnston,  Salutatory;  John  A.  Mills,  Valedictory. 

1831. — James  H.  Thornwell,  Salutatory;  Richard  S.  Gladney, 
Valedictory. 

1832. — Joseph  W.  Lesesne,  Salutatory;  Nelson  Mitchell,  Vale- 
dictory. 

1833. — James  Simons,  Salutatory;  Elisha  Hanilin,  Valedictory. 

1834. — C.  P.  Sullivan,  Salutatory;  M.  L.  Bonham,  Valedictory. 

1835.— William  Blanding,  Salutatory. 

1836. — J.  Pearson,  Salutatory;  A.  Siinkins,  Valedictory. 

1837. — John  N.  Frierson,  Salutatory;  D.  W.  Ray,  Valedictory. 

1838. — A.  Gregg,  Salutatory;  E.  Bellinger,  Valedictory. 

1839. — Isaac  M.  Hutson,  Salutatory;  David  E.  Frierson,  Vale- 
dictory. 

1840.— Haskell  S.  Rhett,  Salutatory;  Thomas  M.  Hanckel, 
Valedictory. 

1841.— Wm.  J.  Rivers,  Salutatory;  Robert  B.  Boylston,  Vale- 
dictory. 

1842. — W.  P.  Starke,  Salutatory;  J.  W.  Landrum,  Valedictory. 

1843. — S.  J.  Barnett,  Salutatory;  C.  D.  Melton,  Valedictory. 

1844. — Patrick  H.  Nelson,  Salutatory;  J.  H.  Carlisle,  Valedictory. 

1845. — Robert  Garlington,  Salutatory;  Thomas  B.  Fraser,  Vale- 
dictory. 

1846. — E.  L.  Patton,  Salutatory;  A.  A.  Morse,  Valedictory. 

1847.— Thomas  Frost,  Salutatory;  John  S.  Green,  Valedictory. 

1848. — James  P.  Adams,  Salutatory;  L.S.  Blanding,  Valedictory. 

1849. — C.  H.  Simonton,  Salutatory;  T.  J.  Glover,  Valedictory. 

1850. — J.  H.  Rion,  Salutatory;  R.  W.  Barnwell,  Valedictory. 

1851. — J.  H.  Elliott,  Salutatory;  J.  R.  Chalmers,  Valedictory. 

1852.— J.  H.  Hudson,  Salutatory;  D.  H.  Porter,  Valedictory. 

1853.— J.  I.  Middleton,  Salutatory;  C.  E.  Leverett,  Valedictory. 

1854. — Jame?  Lowndes, Salutatory;  Benj.  R.  Stuart,  Valedictory. 

1855. — C.  W.  Boyd,  Salutatory;  W.  L.  Trenholm,  Valedictory. 

1856. — G.  M.  Fairlee,  Salutatory;  H.  Covington,  Valedictory. 

1857.— Wm.  H.  White,  Salutatory;  Elias  L.  Rivers,  Valedictory. 

1858. — Edward  H.  Buist,  Salutatory;  Grimke  Rhett,  Valedic- 
tory. 

EXTRACT  FROM  THE  CATALOGUE  OF  1859. 

Board  of  Trustees. — W.  H.  Gist,  Governor  of  the  State,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Board  of  Trustees;  M.  E.  Carn,  Lieutenant  Governor; 
W.  D.  Porter,  President  of  the  Senate ;  James  Simons,  Speaker 
of  the  House  of  Representatives;  James  P.  Carroll,  Chairman  of 
Committee  of  Education,  Senate ;  Samuel  McGowan,  Chairman  of 
Committee  of  Education,  House  of  Representatives;  Chancellors: 
Job  Johnson,  B.  F.  Duncan,  G.  W.  Dargan,  F.  H.  Wardlaw. 


460        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

Judges  :  J.  B.  O'Neall,  D  L.  Wardlaw,  T.  J.  Withers,  J.  N.  Whit- 
ner,  T.  W.  Glover,  K.  Munro;  Messrs:  T.  N.  Dawkins,  B.  F.  Perry, 
J.  I.  Middleton,  J.  H.  Means,  W.  F.  DeSaussure,  11.  W.  Barnwell, 
J.  S.  Preston,  C.  G.  Memminger,  T.  0.  Perrin,  R.  F.  W.  Allston, 
Thomas  Smith,  John  Buchanan,  F.  J.  Moses,  J.  L.  Pettigru,  John 
L.  Manning,  S.  McAliley,  J.  H.  Adams,  James  Farrow,  J.  II. 
Thornwell,  J.  A.  Inglis;  L.  L.  Fraser,  Secretary  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees. 

Board  of  Visitors. — James.  L.  Pettigru,  Thomas  C.  Perrin,  John 
H.  Means,  llev.  A  Glennie,  Rev.  D.  E.  Frierson,  Prof.  Judson, 
Prof.  Louis  Gibbes,  Prof.  Duncan,  Dr.  William  Curtis;  J.  Johnson 
Pettigrew. 

Faculty. — A.  B.  Longstreet,  D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  President  and  Pro- 
fessor of  History,  Political  Economy,  Political  Philosophy  and  Elo- 
cution ;  Maximilian  LaBorde,  M.  D.,  Professor  of  Logic,  Rhetoric 
and  Philosophy  of  the  Mind;  Rev.  J.  L.  Reynolds,  D.  D.,  Professor 
of  Roman  Literature  ;  John  LeConte,  M.  D.,  Professor  of  Natural 
and  Mechanical  Philosophy;  Wm.  J.  Rivers,  A.  M.,  Professor  of 
Greek  Literature;  Rev.  R.  W.  Barnwell,  Professor  of  Moral  Phi- 
losophy, Sacred  Literature  and  Evidences  of  Christianity ;  Joseph 
LeConte,  M.  D.,  Professor  of  Chemistry,  Mineralogy  and  Geology; . 
Charles  S.  Venable,  Professor  of  Mathematics  and  Astronomy. 

B.  W.  Means  Librarian;  K.  S.  Dargan,  Bursar;  W.  B.  Broom, 
Marshal. 

Circular. — The  attention  of  parents  guardians  and  teachers,  is 
particularly  called  to  the  requisitions  for  admission  into  the  Fresh- 
man Class,  and  to  the  studies  of  the  other  classes  of  the  College. 
The  Faculty  have  resolved  that  except  in  very  peculiar  and  extra- 
ordinary cases,  no  young  man  shall  hereafter  be  examined  for  any 
class  who  has  not  both  read  and  carefully  reviewed  all  that  is  re- 
quired for  admission.  When  the  certificate  of  his  teacher  does  not 
distinctly  state  this  fact,  the  applicant  will  be  asked  whether  or  not 
he  has  done  so,  and  in  all  cases  in  which  a  negative  answer  is  given, 
an  examination  shall  be  refused  to  the  candidate.  Hereafter  appli- 
cants may  expect  to  be  thoroughly  examined  in  Arnold's  Latin 
Prose  Composition,  and  teachers  are  requested  to  pay  special  atten- 
tion to  this  requisition.  A  thorough  knowledge  of  Arithmetic 
being  essential  to  success  in  all  the  classes  of  the  College,  applicants 
must  be  prepared  for  a  full  and  searching  examination  in  this 
study. 

Course  of  Studies,  Exercises,  &c. — A  candidate  for  admission 
must  satisfy  the  Faculty  by  written  testimonials  that  he  sustains  a 
good  moral  character.  In  ordinary  cases  the  certificate  must  be 
signed  by  his  last  instructor.  If  from  another  College,  his  standing 
in  that  College  must  be  shown  to  have  been  good  at  the  time  of  his 
leaving  it.  The  stated  time  for  the  examination  of  applicants  is  the 


APPENDIX.  461 

week   of  Commencement;  and  hereafter,    except  in  extraordinary 
cases,  none  will  be  examined  at  any  other  time. 

Applicants  from  other  States  will  be  examined  at  any  time  during 
the  session. 

Students  admitted  to  advanced  standing,  in  addition  to  the 
requisites  for  admission  to  the  Freshman  Class,  must  be  prepared  for 
an  examination  in  the  studies  which  have  been  pursued  by  the 
class  that  they  desire  to  enter,  and  by  the  preceding  classes,  or 
in  other  studies  equivalent  to  them. 

For  Admission  to  the  freshman  Class. — A  candidate  is  required  to 
have  an  accurate  knowledge  of  the  English,  Latin  and  Greek  Gram- 
mars, including  Prosody ;  Morse's,  or  Worcester's  and  Woodbridge's 
Geography ;  Mitchell's  Ancient  Geography ;  Arithmetic,  including 
fractions,  simple  and  compound  proportion,  extraction  of  roots; 
Bourdon's  Algebra  to  Chapter  IX,  or  Loomis'  Algebra  to  Sect. 
XVII :  Sallust ;  Virgil,  (Georgics,  Bucolics,  and  six  books  of  the 
^Bneid);  Select  Orations  of  Cicero,  consisting  of  the  four  against 
Cataline  :  Pro  Lege  Manilla,  Pro  Archia  Poeta,  Pro  Milone,  and  the 
First  Philippic;  Arnold's  Latin  Prose  Composition;  Kiihner's  Greek 
Exercises  (as  far  as  Syntax ;)  Jacob's  Greek  Reader ;  Homer's 
Iliad,  the  first  six  books ;  Xenophon's  Anabasis,  six  books. 

Studies  of  the  Freshman  Class. — Grecian  and  Roman  Antiquities, 
(Eschenburg;)  Livy,  twenty -first  book  ;  Horace,  except  the  Art  of 
Poetry,  Homer's  Iliad,  completed;  Latin  Exercises,  (Kiihner;) 
Greek  Exercises,  (Kiinner  Elem.  Gr.;)  Geometry,  (Legendre ;) 
Ancient  History  ;  Review  of  Algebra,  in  the  Theory  of  Logarithms  ; 

Sophomore  Year. — Elocution,  Tacitus  (Germany  and  Life  of 
Agricola;)  Select  Satires  of  Juvenal  and  Persius,  Exercises  in 
Latin  Composition ;  Demosthenes  De  Corona,  Selections  from 
Greek  Orators  and  Historians,  Greek  Exercises,  Plane  Trigo- 
nometry and  its  applications,  Conic  Sections,  (Loomis' ;)  History  of 
the  Middle  Ages,  History  of  the  Bible,  connection  of  Sacred  and 
Profane  History;  Physiology;  Heat,  Electricity,  Galvanism,  Mag- 
netism and  Electro-Magnetism;  Mechanics,  Gravity,  (Laws  of 
Motion ;)  Chemistry  of  Non-Metallic  Elements ;  Chemical  Phi- 
losophy, (Fowne's.) 

Junior  Year. — Cicero  De  Ofiiciis  or  Lucan's  Pharsalia ;  Horace's 
Art  of  Poetry,  Septem  Contra  Thebas  of  ^schylus,  (Edipus  Tyr. 
of  Sophocles,  Medea  of  Euripides,  Greek  Composition ;  Exercises 
in  Latin  Composition,  Spherical  Trigonometry,  Analytical  Geometry, 
Lectures  on  Differential  and  Integral  Calculus ;  Mechanical  Phi- 
losophy, (Olmsted's,)  concluded ;  Hydrostatics  and  Hydraulics, 
Chemistry,  Moral  Philosophy,  Sacred  Literature  and  Evidences  of 
Christianity,  Whateley's  Logic,  Whateley's  Rhetoric,  Elements  of 
Criticism,  Political  Philosophy. 

Senior  Class. — Terence's  Andria,  Plautus'  Captivi,  Pindar.  Olym. 
1.  11,  Pyth.  1.  Plato's  Crito ;  Selections  from  Aristotle,  Exercises 


462        HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  COLLEGE. 

in  Latin  and  Greek  Composition,  Astronomy,  Political  Economy, 
Political  Ethics,  Philosophy  of  the  Mind,  Criticism  and  Elocution, 
Mineralogy,  Geology,  Agricultural  Chemistry,  Butler's  Analogy. 
Natural  Philosophy,  Olmsted's;  Pneumatics,  Meteorology,  Acoustics 
and  Optics. 

There  are  three  recitations  of  each  class,  daily ;  one  after  morn- 
ing prayers ;  one  at  11  o'clock,  a.  m.;  one  at  4  o'clock,  p.  m.  On 
Saturday  morning  there  is  one  in  each  class.  The  recitation  con- 
tinues for  one  hour.  Beside  the  recitations  there  are  lectures, 
rhetorical  exercises,  and  especial  attention  is  paid  to  English  Com- 
position in  all  the  classes. 

Libraries. — The  College  Library  contains  twenty-four  thousand 
volumes.  A  liberal  sum  annually  granted  by  the  Legislature  pro- 
vides for  the  constant  increase  of  the  number  of  books.  The  Library 
is  opened  Tuesdays,  Thursdays  arid  Saturdays,  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  Students.  Resident  graduates,  in  common  with  under 
graduates,  have  the  privilege  of  taking  out  books. 

Beside  the  College  Library,  there  are  Libraries  belonging  to  the 
two  literary  societies,  which  are  respectively  reserved  for  the  use  of 
their  members. 

Scholarships. — There  are  five  Scholarships  in  the  College:  one 
founded  by  Hon.  J.  L.  Manning,  yielding  an  income  of  $350  a 
year  j  two  by  Wade  Hampton,  Jr.,  yielding  each  an  income  of  $210 ; 
one  by  Hiram  B.  Hutchinson,  yielding  $350,  and  one  by  Hon.  R. 
F.  W.  Allston,  with  an  income  of  $420.  These  are  awarded  by  the 
Faculty  to  young  men  of  more  than  ordinary  merit  and  attainments, 
whose  circumstances  require  that  they  should  be  aided  in  their  Col- 
lege course.  Candidates  who  have  not  been  members  of  the  College, 
and  whose  character  and  scholarship  are  not  known  to  the  Faculty, 
have  to  undergo  a  special  examination  in  order  to  be  put  on  any  of 
these  foundations.  They  are  not  designed  to  be  simply  aids  to 
indigence,  but  compliments  to  excellence. 

Beneficiaries. — The  literary  societies  generally  have  each  a  bene- 
ficiary, and  some  times  a  class  supports  one  of  its  members  through 
College. 

Resolution. — The  attention  of  the  Commissioners  of  Free  Schools 
is  called  to  the  following  resolution  of  the  Board  of  Trustees : 

Resolved,  That  the  Faculty  be  authorized  to  receive  one  student 
from  each  Judicial  District  in  the  State,  free  of  any  charge  for 
tuition,  who  shall  be  recommended  by  the  Commissioners  of  Free 
Schools  within  that  District:  Provided,  That  there  shall  not  be 
more  than  one  student  at  any  one  time  from  the  said  Judicial 
District. 

Prize  Essays. — Four  gold  medals,  worth  $50  each,  are  annually 
awarded  to  the  Senior,  Junior  and  Sophomore  Classes,  respectively, 
for  the  best  Essay  on  subjects  assigned  by  the  Faculty. 

Allston  Lecture  for  1859. — One  hundred  dollars  will  be  awarded 


APPENDIX.  463 

for  the  best  Lecture  on  "  The  influences  of  Associations  in  advancing 
the  sciences."  All  Essays  must  be  handed  to  the  President  by  the 
first  Monday  in  October.  Alumni  as  well  as  students  may  compete 
for  this  prize. 

Apparatus. — The  College  possesses  the  necessary  apparatus  for 
pursuing  all  the  Philosophical,  Astronomical  and  Chemical  studies 
prescribed  in  the  course. 

Expenses. — The  stated  expenses  of  the  College  term,  consisting  of 
nine  months,  paid  quarterly  in  advance,  exclusive  of  books,  clothes, 
room,  furniture  and  travelling  expenses,  are  as  follows,  viz : 

Board  (in  commons)  about  87  weeks,  at  $3.50  per  week,  $129  50 

Tuition,  room-rent,  and  use  of  library, 50  00 

Fuel,  about 25  00 

Washing,  from $12  to  15  00 

Servant  hire, t 9  00 

Lights,  about 6  00 

$234  50 

Board  at  the  licensed  boarding-houses  varies  from  $3  50  to  $4 
per  week. 

Terms,  Vacations  and  Public  Examinations. — The  College  year 
has  only  one  session,  consisting  of  nine  months.  It  begins  on  the 
first  Monday  in  October,  and  ends  about  the  first  of  July.  In  this 
session  three  weeks  holiday  is  given,  extending  from  the  second 
Monday  in  December  to  the  first  Monday  in  January.  There  are 
three  public  examinations  of  the  Junior,  Sophomore  and  Freshman 
Classes  during  the  session;  one  in  April, one  in  June,  and  the  rising 
examination  in  December.  The  Senior  Class  has  but  one  public 
examination,  which  begins  on  the  third  Monday  before  Commence- 
ment. The  Annual  Commencement  is  on  the  first  Monday  in 
December.  The  May  exhibition  is  on  the  nights  of  the  first  Thurs- 
day and  Friday  after  the  first  Monday  in  May.  At  each  of  these-, 
the  members  of  the  Senior  Class,  who  receive  distinctions,  are  re- 

r'red  to  deliver  speeches.     Applicants  are  informed  that  it  is  very 
irable  they  should  present  themselves  for  examination  on  the  day 
after  Commencement,  at  9  o'clock,  A.  M. 


ERRATA. 


PAGE   LINE 

15 10 For  Movrit,  read  Morrit. 

16...4&ll...For  Common's,  read  Commons. 

44 24 For  third,  read  first. 

69 4 For  Darnell,  read  Barrel. 

164 4 For  1840,  read  1839. 

347 31 For  exerted,  read  excited. 

378 30 For  its  strongest,  read  their  strongest;  also,  for  its 

most,  read  their  most. 

There  are  a  few  other  typographical  errors  not  worthy  of  especial  notice, 
rhich  the  reader  can  correct  for  himself. 


CATALOGUE 


P.     B.     GLASS, 

(SUCCESSOR  TO  E.  L  BKYAN,) 

COLUMBIA,    S.    C. 


A  LIST  OF  BOOKS 


PUBLISHED   BY 


(SUCCESSOR  TO  R,  L,  BRYAN,) 

175    RICHAKDSON    STREET, 
COLUMBIA,    SO.    CA. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SO.  CA.  COLLEGE, 

From  its  Incorporation,  December  19,  1801,  to  November  25,  1857 — in- 
cluding sketches  of  its  Presidents  and  Professors ;  with  an  Appendix.  By  M. 
LABORDE,  M.  D.,  Professor  of  Metaphysics,  Logic  and  Rhetoric,  South  Carolina 
College.  8vo.,  463  pp,  Cloth  $2,  half-calf  $3.50. 

THE  CAROLINA  TRIBUTE  TO  CALHOUN, 

Containing  the  remarks  in  Congress  of  distinguished  Senators  and  Repre- 
sentatives ;  The  Sermon  of  the  Chaplain  of  the  Senate ;  The  Report  of  the 
Committee  of  Twenty -five;  The  Narrative  of  the  Funeral  Honors  at 
Charleston ;  The  Message  of  Governor  Seabrook  ;  The  Discourses  of  the  Rev. 
Messrs.  Barnwell,  Thornwell,  Miles,  Palmer  and  Smith ;  and  the  Orations  of 
Messrs.  Allston,  Colt,  Henry,  Whyte,  Porcher,  Hammond,  Rhett  and  Porter. 
The  Resolutions  of  the  Pennsylvania  and  New  York  Legislature ;  The  Pro- 
ceedings of  the  New  York  Historical  Society ;  and  other  memorials  of  rare 
interest ;  with  an  accurate  portrait.  Edited  by  Prof.  JOHN  P.  THOMAS,  Citadel, 
Charleston.  8vo.,  411  pp.  Cloth  $2,  half-calf  $3.50 

THE  CHARACTER  OF  THE  GENTLEMAN. 

An  Address  to  the  Students  of  Miami  University,  Ohio,  on  the  evening 
before  Commencement  Day,  in  August,  1846.  By  FRANCIS  LIBBER,  L  L.  D., 
Prof,  of  History,  Columbia  College,  New  York ;  late  Prof,  of  Political  Phi- 
losophy and  Economy  in  South  Carolina  College.  Second  and  enlarged  edition. 
12mo.  Cloth,  75  cts.,  paper  50  cts. 


B.    GKLA.SS 

IS  SOLE  AGENT  OF  THE  STATE  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA  FOR 
THE  SALE  OF  THE  FOLLOWING  BOOKS? 


THE  STATUTES  OP  SOUTH  CAROLINA.    Eleven  volumes,  octavo. 

CARROLL'S  HISTORICAL  COLLKCTIONS  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.     Two  volumes,  8vo. 

PRESSLEY'S  LAW  OF  MAGISTRATES.    One  volume,  octavo. 

ALSO, 

IS  AGENT  FOR  THE  SALE  OF  THE  FOLLOWING  BOOKS  PUBLISHED 

BY  McfJARTER  &  DAWSON, 

CHARLESTON,  S.  C. 


THE  LAW  AND  EQUITY  REPORTS  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 
RIVERS'  HISTORY  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.     One  volume,  8vo.;  $2. 
CARROLL'S  CATECHISM  OF  UNITED  STATES  HISTORY.     12mo.,  cloth;  75  cts. 
THE  HIRELING  AND  THE  SLAVE,  CHICORA,  and  other  Poems ;  by  WM.  J.  GRAYSON. 
One  volume,  12mo,,  cloth;  $1. 

And  of  the  following  Books  published  in  South  Carolina  ; 

CONNOR'S  LAW  DIGEST,  $8^  interleaved,  $10. 

CONNOR'S  EQUITY  DIGEST,  $12;  interleaved,  2  vols.,  $15. 

CONNOR'S  SUIT  AT  LAW,  $1. 

FLAGG'S  DIGEST,  $4;  interleaved,  $5. 

MILLER'S  COMPILATION,  $3. 

THE  COUNTRY;  BY  WM.  J.  GRAYSON.     Cloth  50 cts.,  gilt  75  cts. 

HISTORICAL  COLLECTIONS  OF  THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY.  Two 
volumes.  8vo.,  cloth;  $5  per  vol. 

GIBBES'  DOCUMENTARY  HISTORY  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.    3  vols.,  8vo.,  cloth ;  $4.50. 

RAMSAY'S  HISTORY  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.     1  vol.,  8vo.;  $3.50. 

LIBBER'S  REPORTS  OF  THE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA  ;  with  nu- 
merous Geognostic  Maps,  &c.  Vols.  1,  2  and  3. 

EVANS'  ROAD  LAW  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 

ANALYSIS  OF  BUTLER'S  ANALOGY,  PART  FIRST  ;  BY  REV.  JAMES  H.  THORNWELL, 
D.  D. 

REVIEW  OF  PALEY'S  MORAL  PHILOSOPHY;  by  same  author. 

FURMAN'S  POEMS.    1  vol.,  12mo.;  $1. 

JOHNSON  &  WALKER'S  MAP  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA;  handsomely  colored  and 
mounted  on  rollers. 


AT 


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